After his first number one hit in 1962, "Breaking Up Is Hard To Do," singer/songwriter Neil Sedaka had some hungry years. By 1964, his singing career appeared to be over. He took a job as a staff writer for Don Kirshner at Screen Gems and with partner Howard Greenfield turned out a few hits, including "Workin' on a Groovy Thing" for Patti Drew and, later, for the Fifth Dimension; "Puppet Man" for Tom Jones and the Fifth Dimension again' and "(Is This the Way to) Amarillo" for Tony Christie.

Around the same time that his high school girlfriend recorded Tapestry, Neil tried for a comeback with an album titled Emergence, released on the Kirshner label. Despite some critical approval, it failed to gain airplay or sales, and Sedaka and Greenfield decided to call an end to their long songwriting career. They wrote two more songs, including the sentimental "Our Last Song Together."

Through Kirshner, Neil met lyricist Phil Cody and they began writing together. Neil's agent, Dick Fox, suggested a trip to England might revive Sedaka's recording career. With wife Leba, daughter Dara and son Marc, Neil crossed the Atlantic and toured Great Britain, with an important date scheduled at the Royal Albert Hall in London. He won the audience over with his new songs, especially the finale, "Solitaire." The press loved him, too.

Personal manager Harvey Listberg suggested that while Neil was in Britain, he should record some songs at Strawberry Studios with a new group, Hotlegs (Graham Gouldman, Eric Stewart, Kevin Godley and Lol Creme). The result was the Solitaire LP, which did better in the United Kingdom than in the United States. That led to another album recorded with Hotlegs, now rechristened 10cc, at Strawberry Studios. Titled The Tra-La Days Are Over, it was not released in America and a frustrated Neil decided to record his next album in Los Angeles.

British singer/producer Kenny Young recommended producer Robert Appere at Clover Studios on Santa Monica Boulevard. Before leaving London, Phil and Neil wrote a batch of new songs that included "Laughter in the Rain."

An all-star band of session musicians played at the Los Angeles date, including Danny Kortchmar, Leland Sklar, Russ Kunkel and David Foster. Again, the album only had a British release. Although no American company was interested, a single from the album ("Laughter in the Rain") went to number 15 on the British chart.

Neil and Leba celebrated with a party at their London apartment. The guests included the Carpenters, Rod Stewart, Paul McCartney, the members of 10cc and two people who lingered until the end of the evening: Elton John and his manager, John Reid. Neil asked if they would like to sign him to their new American label, Rocket Records. Elton and Reid said yes and soon afterward Neil and Leba were visiting E.J. at the Caribou Ranch in Colorado to discuss Neil's first American release on Rocket.

The resulting album was a compilation of songs from the two albums recorded with 10cc and the LP produced by Appere in Los Angeles. The cover photo of Neil looking like he belonged in The Godfather inspired the title: Sedaka's Back.

Neil chose "Laughter in the Rain" for the first single, but before it was released a cover version by Lea Roberts on United Artists started to get airplay. Not willing to let his American comeback slip away, Neil met with executives at MCA Records, distributor for the new Rocket label. They agreed to rush release "Laughter in the Rain" and within days it was a hit, bounding up the chart. During the week of February 1, 1975, it went to number one in the US. It was the beginning of Neil Sedaka's second career.

After the Sedaka/Greenfield collaboration "Love Will Keep Us Together" was a number one smash for the Captain and Tennille in May 1975, Neil's second recording streak continued four months later with "Bad Blood" (featuring Elton on backing vocals), another number one hit. Neil then did a bluesy reworking of his 1962 hit "Breaking Up Is Hard To Do," which was a Top 10 hit. He charted two more songs into the US Top 40 the next year, "Love In The Shadows" (#16) and "Steppin' Out" (#36). Neil continued to collaborate with his old songwriting partner Howard Greenfield and made numerous TV and concert appearances. In 1980, he recorded "Should've Never Let You Go" with daughter Dara, which reached #19 on the pop chart.

Neil went on to be inducted into the Songwriter's Hall of Fame, and was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, the Sammy Cahn Lifetime Achievement Award, and a Special International Award from the British professional songwriters association The Ivors. Although his fans mounted a sustained campaign to have him inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame over the years, he was never inducted or nominated. He died in Los Angeles on February 27, 2026. He was 86.

(Fred Bronson, The Billboard Book of Number One Hits, Billboard, 1988.)

Faszinierende Vielfalt

Die Tedeschi Trucks Band erweitert auf ihrem neuen Album »Future Soul« ihren musikalischen Horizont.

Bluesrock bleibt dabei das Fundament des kraftvollen Sounds der zwölfköpfigen Gruppe aus Florida. Gleichzeitig sorgen moderne Grooves und vielschichtige Soundtexturen für eine faszinierende Vielfalt in den elf neuen Songs. Das mag auch an Produzent Mike Elizondo liegen, der schon mit so unterschiedlichen Acts wie Dr. Dre, Turnstile und Twenty One Pilots gearbeitet hat.

Mit »Future Soul« erweitert die Tedeschi Trucks Band ihren Horizont, ohne dabei ihre Wurzeln zu verlieren. Produziert wurde das Album von dem genreübergreifenden Mike Elizondo (bekannt für seine Arbeit mit Brothers Osborne, Dr. Dre, Twenty One Pilots und Turnstile). Darauf erkundet das 12-köpfige Ensemble tiefere Grooves und reichhaltigere Texturen als je zuvor.

Der feurige Titeltrack »Future Soul« besticht durch ein kraftvolles Riff und explosive Vocals – ein Beweis dafür, dass die Band nach wie vor pure Rockenergie entfesseln kann, wenn sie will. »Crazy Cryin'« strotzt vor rohen Emotionen und verbindet Gospel-Harmonien und Blues-Grit auf klassische TTB-Art, während »Who Am I« einen nachdenklichen Ton anschlägt und Susan Tedeschis gefühlvolle Stimmgewalt und Derek Trucks' lyrisches Gitarrenspiel in perfekter Balance präsentiert.
Textlich blickt das Album ebenso nach vorne wie nach innen – es setzt sich mit Identität, Widerstandsfähigkeit und Hoffnung in unsicheren Zeiten auseinander. Elizondos Produktion fügt subtile moderne Akzente hinzu – warme Bässe, vielschichtige Percussion und Raum für die Bläser und Hintergrundgesänge, ohne dabei das organische Zusammenspiel zu opfern, das die Live-Magie der Band ausmacht.

»Future Soul« ist sowohl eine Neuerfindung als auch eine Bestätigung: ein lebhaftes neues Kapitel für eine der beeindruckendsten Bands Amerikas.

Nach dem ausladenden [.​.​.​] Vierfachwerk I Am The Moon ist das musikalische Ehepaar [.​.​.​] zurückgekehrt zu einer ganz normalen, schlichten Scheibe mit elf Tracks.​ Doch die haben es in sich: Future Soul ist die bislang rockigste Platte des Kreativduos .​.​.

(GoodTimes, April/Mai 2026)

Mustergültig konzeptioniertes zweites Album des Songwriters. (...) Diese 52 Minuten sind so überzeugend, dass man Moritz Krämer danach nahezu alles unterschreiben würde.

(RollingStone)

Chapman in fine form, with the aid of regular bassist Rick Kemp and drummer Dave Mattacks. There are a few synthesizer frills here and there, but these are kept fairly low key in favor of accenting the guitars. Chapman's playing, as always, is top-notch, with the instrumental "Lescudjack" and "Theme From the Movie of the Same Name" providing a snappy showcase for his skills. The songs on display range from slow ballads to the snappy country variant of the title track, all of them played well and eminently listenable. Given the more attractive elements of Chapman's music, it's a surprise he hasn't found more success over the years.

(by Steven McDonald, All Music Guide)

Run for the Roses is the last of the studio albums to have come from the Jerry Garcia Band, even though the combo would continue to tour for another 13 years. Sadly, it is also Garcia's most lightweight effort as a bandleader. The disc certainly features a few distinct and redeemable moments; however, taken as whole there are far too many marginal performances for it to be deemed as thoroughly captivating as any of his previous solo work — especially the wholly inspired Cats Under the Stars (1978). Along with John Kahn (bass/fretless bass/synthesizer/piano/clavinet/guitar/slide guitar/electric guitar/co-producer), Garcia chose some interesting cover tunes — such as the impotently executed "I Saw Her Standing There" and the underachieving "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" — the latter of which would become increasingly effective as a live vehicle for the Garcia Band as well as the Grateful Dead during the ensuing years (an ultimate acoustic rendition can be found on the highly recommended and infamous Pizza Tapes from 2000). There are several highlights from the Garcia/Robert Hunter canon, whose brilliance ultimately makes Run for the Roses a justifiable release. Chief among them is the title track, which bops along at an agile pace and formally introduces the effusive organ fills and licks that typify Melvin Seals' style of aggressive interaction with Garcia. Hunter is up to his old lyrical insinuations and poetic ambiguity on "Run for the Roses." Couplets such as "If you got the do-re I got the mi/And I got a notion we're all at sea" are as poignant and poetic as they are Dadaist, reflecting the inherent beauty of Hunter's lyrical prowess. "Valerie" is another standout track; it's a slightly tweaked song dealing with the extremes of an unrequited love. Garcia's vocal is one of his best on this release and perfectly fits the hang-dog mood and persona that Hunter so aptly depicts in the narrative. Both tracks quickly became enthusiasts' favorites and remained in the core rotation of the Garcia Band's performance songbook. On an aesthetic level, Run for the Roses is also notable for the disconcerting artwork by Bay Area visual artist Victor Moscoso. While die-hard enthusiasts may feel as if the disc has more to offer than mentioned above, when contrasted with the material's perpetual on-stage evolution this album falls short of the high standards set by Garcia's earlier studio efforts.

(by Lindsay Planer, All Music Guide)

Guru Guru's second album starts off on a chaotic note, but "Electric Junk" soon resolves itself into a full-on band jam and takes it from there, showing again that the band readily trod the fine line between merely skilled and truly inspired. There's always a nagging sense on this album that the group is but one step away from prog rock wank of the worst kind, but then there'll be a thick blast of righteous noise or a suddenly lovely dark chime that feels more Blue Oyster Cult than Emerson, Lake & Palmer, say. This can even happen out of nowhere, like the odd spoken word pronouncements interrupting the attempted drum solo on "Electric Junk" or the open-ended electronic moans and echoed calls during the floating midsection of "Space Ship." "The Meaning of Meanings" has the most "way deep, man" feeling on the whole album, as the title perhaps demonstrates, but even it has room for a rather bizarre midsection where the lyrics aren't sung or shouted as much as groaningly sighed over a slowly building full-band burst. Neumeier's drumming here is actually some of his best, while Genrich sounds like he's inventing some of Daniel Ash's feedback freakouts years in advance. The oddest number of the four mostly is such due to the name -- one would figure that calling a song "Bo Diddley" and clearly chanting the title at various points during the song would mean a full-on rave-up in the rock legend's vein. Anything but! There's enough of a smoky feel going on to suggest the influence the likes of Quicksilver Messenger Service incorporated, say, but a Diddley-beat workout this isn't, though there are a few game attempts here and there to try -- sort of.

(by Ned Raggett, All Music Guide)

Pay the Devil, an album-long foray into country music, shouldn't come as a surprise to Van Morrison fans. It's a logical extension of his love affair with American music. Certainly blues, R&B, soul, and jazz have been at the forefront, but one can go all the way back to the Bang years and find "Joe Harper Saturday Morning," or songs on Tupelo Honey that touch country. More recently, You Win Again, with Linda Gail Lewis, offered two Hank Williams tunes and "Crazy Arms." The Skiffle Sessions with Lonnie Donegan offered traditional Southern tunes including Jimmie Rodgers' "Mule Skinner Blues." Morrison's lyrics have also referenced country music blatantly. Pay the Devil comes from direct sources of inspiration: his father's skiffle band and Ray Charles' historic forays into country on the two volumes of Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music in 1962. The evidence lies in three cuts on this disc, all of which Charles recorded: Curley Williams' "Half as Much," Art Harris and Fred Jay's "What Am I Livin' For," and Hank Williams' "Your Cheatin' Heart." Morrison's a cagey one: his own mercurial versions of these nuggets are more traditional than those of Charles, yet are steeped in similar production styles that offer a clear nod to the late artist. While there are no horns on Pay the Devil, the layers of strings on top of "fiddles" and honky tonk pianos -- as well as earlier pedal steel styles -- are giveaways. And then there is the voice. Like Charles, Morrison is a soul singer no matter what he sings and he digs into these tomes with fire and the uncommon sweetness of tone and limited timbre that Charles did. But Morrison re-creates these tunes in his own image too.

Recorded in Belfast with his own band, Pay the Devil flows seamlessly from start to finish over 15 cuts. It opens with a killer read of "There Stands the Glass," which is brave considering it's synonymous with Webb Pierce (one of two here -- the other is "More and More"). It's drenched in pedal steel, electric guitar, and a pair of basses. The fiddle floats just above the upright piano and a swell of strings in the bridge. It drips with a swaggering loneliness and gets the full weepy treatment with Geraint Watkins' piano solo. "Things Have Gone to Pieces," written by Leon Payne, is full of wasted self-pity and honky tonk desolation. Once more it's a daring move given how closely associated the song is with George Jones. In the grain of his lionhearted voice, Morrison tears it back to its essence as a country-blues song. Morrison outdoes himself on Clarence Williams' "My Bucket's Got a Hole in It," turning it into a rockabilly shuffle. Billy Wallace's "Back Street Affair" is full of barroom soul. Bill Anderson's "Once a Day" is given the full '60s countrypolitain treatment here, with strings and a full backing chorus that could almost be the Anita Kerr Singers. "What Am I Living For" is a tune closely associated with Conway Twitty in his prime. Morrison's version touches on the original but brings it home to Belfast.

In addition to the classics, there are three originals here as well. There's the rollicking hillbilly blues of "Playhouse" that growl like the young Conway Twitty and Johnny Horton did. Then comes the misleading title track. Unable to let his discontent stay out of his records, Morrison once again assails those who would pigeonhole his music, to the tune of a laid-back, shuffling country stroll. "This Has Got to Stop" is the finest of the three. It's proof that Morrison can write a solid, traditional honky tonk song worthy of a Jones, or a Don Gibson. His vocal digs into the lyrics and sets it in the blanket of the deceptively loose barroom-styled accompaniment. The set closes with a deeply emotional read of Rodney Crowell's "Till I Gain Control Again." Paul Godden's lonesome dobro is the engine that guides it emotionally. Bob Loveday's violins add painterly touches to the Watkins piano in the foreground and the guitars fill the rest. Godden's pedal steel pleads the country tradition, but Morrison's singing is so full of sadness, ache, and regret that it actually closes the gap between it and soul music as the record whispers to a shimmering, whispering close. Pay the Devil is at the crossroads of country, blues, and soul. In his voice is the authority to bring them together. No matter how restless and inconsistent he can be because of his obsession with perfection, Morrison is capable of being inspired enough to let his muse guide him toward something approaching greatness. Pay the Devil is proof .

(by Thom Jurek, All Music Guide)

Folk raged in Germany in the early seventies, so this release seems logical enough. Previous Stivell LP's were only available as an import in Germany. Undoubtedly this is one of his best and this serves as a record that makes it clear why Stivell almost singlehandedly succeeded in carving an international niche for folk (rock) from Brittany. Apart from the almost pugnacious rock track Brezohoneg' rock, a convincing incentive to speak the native language of Brittany, it is traditional material almost throughout, but presented in a unique and strictly personal manner. Stivell's main instrument is the celtic harp and he uses this in itself quiet instrument with great elasticity and verve. The elegant guitars of Dan Ar Bras dominate the finely honed arrangements. The Breton material is powerful and full of uncommon twists, a far cry from the diluted versions for tourists in places like Vannes and Lorient. All tracks are filled with a combination of down-to-earth and even gritty directness with celestial widths and etherical visions, a combination that made Stivell a national hero after an exhausting career. The importance of Stivell for Breton culture cannot easily be overestimated.

Why the great ''celtic'' cover of the native (French) pressing was replaced by this horrible design is anybody's guess. A reasonable picture of Stivell with his harp is placed within an atrocious frame that sits uneasily on a flat green background. The lettering makes it even worse. Both fonts are totally unsuitable and the pink shadows are the sad climax of no taste at all. A graphic monstruosity. The backcover holds a fine live photograph, the information on the contents, a small version of the tasteless lettering and two small pictures of Stivell's previous French albums on Fontana.

Notes: The British version was titled From celtic roots and released as Fontana 6325 304 in 1973 in a totally different cover. The native (French) version had yet another (fold-out) cover and was released as Chemins de terre on Fontana with the same catalogue number as in Britain, also in 1973.

(www.vertigoswirl.com)

Alan Stivell is Britanny's finest musician and this is his finest album, although there are many others which could claim that title (e.g. 'Before Landing', 'A L'Olympia', 'Renaissance Of The Celtic Harp', etc.). This album is defiantly pan-Celtic with songs from Ireland ('Susy MacGuire'), Scotland ('Oidhche Mhaith') and Wales ('Can Y Melinydd') as well as Britanny. Astounding musicianship from Stivell and his recruits. He's famous for his harp playing but check out the bombarde on 'An Dro Nevez' and the bagpipes on the storming 'Ian Morrisson Reel', truly one of Stivell's triumphs. Those who appreciate the strains of Celtic nationalism that pervade Stivell's work will enjoy the sentiments expressed here: "hep Brezhoneg Breizh ebet" - "without the Breton language there is no Britanny".

Traditional folk elements are augmented with an at times substantially heavy rock component. The two styles make for an album of great diversity, range of mood and tempo and the all-round virtuosity of Stivell makes this a must have.

(www.amazon.co.uk)

It could be considered insulting to say that Alan Stivell is 'French'; he's actually a Breton, from the area known to English speakers as Brittany, home to one of the six ancient Celtic languages, along with Cornish, Welsh (the most actively spoken of the six), Irish, Scots and Manx (Isle of Man). Along with brief Fairport member Dan ar Bras, Stivell is chiefly responsible for the upsurge in interest in his region's folk traditions in the '60s and '70s. His chosen instrument is the Breton harp, looking a lot like the Irish harp (as used by Guinness as their logo), on which he is apparently a virtuoso; he also plays various pipes and flutes, plus keyboard instruments. Chemins de Terre/From Celtic Roots was Stivell's fourth album proper, although his earliest recording dates from his mid teens, in the late '50s. I can imagine that parts of it upset traditionalists at the time, especially the twin-guitar workout on his own composition, Brezhoneg' Raok, although there's plenty of traditional music from all corners of the Celtic region to balance it out. She Moved Through The Fair will be familiar to anyone with even a passing interest in English/Irish folk, as it seems to've been recorded by everyone, although the rest of the 'trad.arr' material is less well known, at least to me. There are a dozen or so musicians featured on the album, including the aforementioned Dan ar Bras on guitar, mixing the ancient and modern (Hammond, electric guitar, kit drums) with aplomb, with the end result that the album fits perfectly into the fledgling folk-rock genre. An excellent album, fusing disparate styles with care and sensitivity.