LIFESTYLE36 TUESDAY, APRIL 8, 2013 Music & Movies

This CD cover image released by Vinyl Recordings shows ‘Everlasting,’ by Martina McBride.—AP Bollywood actors Akshay Kumar, Mohit Marwah and Kiara Advani talk to media during a promotional event for the forthcoming Hindi film ‘FUGLY’ directed by Kabir Sadanand in Mumbai yesterday.—AFP McBride offers her take on soul classics Review: Tenors Florez, Brownlee offer new albums f all contemporary country singers, McBride presents several impressive awrence Brownlee, “Virtuoso Rossini Arias” (Delos) For more than a off-putting. And he clearly has to push the limits of his resources on the cli- Martina McBride seems the most performances, turning Little Walter’s “My decade, Peruvian Juan Diego Florez and American Lawrence mactic high notes. How well he can handle such roles on stage remains a Owell-suited to interpret classic soul Babe” into a funky, sexy love song and Brownlee have been the world’s leading bel canto tenors, thrilling question to be answered when he debuts as “Werther” in a couple of years. tunes. The four-time Country Music Fred Neil’s “Little Bit Of Rain” into a tender L Association female vocalist of the year treatise on separation that lightens the audiences with their high notes and technical agility in operas by Rossini, For many fans the album’s highlight will be an irresistibly jaunty rendi- Donizetti and other early 19th century composers. Now in their early 40s, tion of “Mes amis, Ècoutez l’histoire” from Adolph Adam’s “Le Postillon de has shown repeatedly that she can wail dark tones of versions by Linda Ronstadt they have released new albums that show them in elegant form and offer Lonjumeau.” This aria is notable for ascending to a climactic high D, which with sass and find the depth in emotion- and Karen Dalton. That said, these takes a chance to savor the differences between the two light-voiced marvels. Florez hits beautifully. He is ably accompanied by the Orchestra e Coro del ally complex material. Still, on her new lack the fierceness of Otis Redding’s “I’ve Florez’s first new album in four years is a compilation of arias from French Teatro Comunale di Bologna, conducted by Roberto Abbado. Brownlees’s album, “Everlasting,” McBride begs com- Been Loving You Too Long” and Elvis opera, ranging from Adrien Boieldieu’s obscure “La Dame blanche” to album - his first compilation of arias with orchestra - is all Rossini and all parison with such giants as Aretha Presley’s “Suspicious Minds” or the ecstat- Offenbach’s still-popular “La Belle Helene.” splendid. There’s an ardent sweetness to his voice that contrasts strikingly Franklin and Sam Cooke by taking on ic joy of Van Morrison’s “Wild Night” and Especially noteworthy are three forays into romantic repertory usually with Florez’s more astringent sound. And he is no less a technical magi- their most potent performances and Diana Ross on The Supremes’ “Come See associated with bigger voices - two selections from Jules Massenet’s cian. Note his repeated daring lunges to high C in “Che ascolta” from material. Working with producer Don About Me.” McBride offers up pleasantly “Werther” and one from Charles Gounod’s “Romeo et Juliette.” Though “Otello,” or the astonishing 16 seconds he holds the final B-flat in a selec- Was, who brings an understated R&B listenable versions of baby boomer stan- Florez’s sound may be a bit warmer and fuller than in the past and he sings tion from the one-act “L’occasione fa il ladro.” Constantine Orbelain con- pulse to the songs, McBride leans on vul- dards on “Everlasting,” an album that will with grace and sensitivity, his voice still seems small for such fare and still ducts the Kaunas City Symphony Orchestra of Lithuania.—AP nerability and purity of tone rather than please her fans and spice up her concerts bears the penetrating nasal quality that his detractors have always found the growling, rapturous release of the but won’t replace any of the originals on originals. the mixtapes of R&B fans.—AP

This CD cover image released by Decca shows ‘L’Amour,’ by Juan Diego This CD cover image released by Delos shows ‘Lawrence Brownlee - Florez.—AP Virtuoso Rossini Arias.’—AP This CD cover image released by Rounder Records shows ‘Carter Girl,’ the latest release by Carlene Carter.—AP Carlene Carter Review: Wilko Johnson, Roger Daltrey rock on leans on family ties ilko Johnson, former guitarist of rab- ble-rousing 1970s British rockers Dr arlene Carter proves just how per- Carter is the sole survivor of all those she Feelgood, is enjoying a bittersweet W sonal, and powerful, a tribute looks to for material. She has recorded late-career surge. Johnson’s jagged playing album can be with “Carter Girl.” The Carter Family material in the past, but and menacing stare helped give Dr Feelgood’s C album focuses solely on songs with fami- “Carter Girl” has a rare power, drawn from bluesy rock an infectious, raucous energy. The ly ties as she retools classics by country memories, tears and years of finding band was briefly a sensation and foreshad- music pioneers the Carter Family (“Gold strength in these songs of blood and owed punk’s anarchic spirit. Then the group Watch And Chain,” “Little Black Train”), the legacy. Produced by Don Was, Carter imploded and Johnson spent years as a cult Carter Sisters (“Poor Old Heartsick Me”), transforms each song to increase its emo- hero, cherished by a tight coterie of fans. Last her mother June Carter Cash (“Tall Lover tional and musical heft. Standouts year Johnson was diagnosed with incurable Man”) and her stepfather Johnny Cash include a duet with Vince Gill on pancreatic cancer; vowing to rock until the (“Troublesome Waters,” performed as a “Lonesome Valley 2003,” on which end, he set out on a farewell tour. duet with Willie Nelson). The one original, Carlene adds personal verses to a Carter And finally the world is taking notice. There “Me And The Wildwood Rose,” is a song Family classic, and a stark duet with Kris have been sold-out shows, a slot at this sum- Carlene wrote about her late sister, Rosie, Kristofferson on “Black Jack David.” Like mer’s Glastonbury Festival and now an album and first recorded in 1990. the songs she’s recorded, this is an album with Roger Daltrey, lead singer of The Who. The material gains poignancy because for the ages.—AP Inspired by a shared love of early British rock- ers like Johnny Kidd and the Pirates, “Going Back Home” is deliberately rough-edged and retro - even the label, Chess Records, is a her- itage brand resurrected for the release. Comedian John Pinette found Recorded in a week with producer Dave Eringa and Johnson’s touring band, its 11 tracks dead in Pittsburg hotel room include 10 Johnson compositions, from the ohn Pinette, a stand-up comedian Feelgood days through his solo career. who guest-starred as the victim of a The title track sets the tone of robust, rock- carjacking in the final episode of the ing R&B. Daltrey growls lustily over Johnson’s J comedy show Seinfeld, has died at age choppy riffs and it’s spiced with lashings of 50, an official said on Sunday. Pinette was dirty harmonica from Steve Weston and found dead inside a Pittsburgh, galumphing piano from ex-Style Council key- Pennsylvania, hotel room on Saturday, an boardist Mick Talbot. Songs like “Keep it Out of official with the Allegheny County Sight” and “All Through the City” have a swag- Medical Examiner’s Office said. Pinette gering energy and raw yearning. “Some Kind of died from natural causes and was discov- Hero” is a meaty slice of the blues on the ever- ered by family members, the official said. green topic of a cheatin’ woman, but the lyrical A native of Boston, Pinette was known bravado is laced with British self-deprecation: for making jokes about his weight during John Pinette “I wish I was some kind of hero.” The album’s his stand-up performances whose titles rough-hewn quality is less of an asset on a bal- gunpoint. The show’s stars stand by and included “I’m Starvin’!” and “Show Me the lad like “Turned 21” or a cover of Bob Dylan’s watch the incident and make fun of the Buffet.” In 2011, his “Still Hungry” special “Can You Please Crawl Out Your Window.” man’s weight before they are arrested by premiered on Comedy Central. Pinette “Going Back Home” is not going to win awards a police officer for violating the “Good also appeared in movies like “Junior,” “The for innovation, but it’s feisty fun and a rousing Samaritan Law.” The medical examiner’s Punisher” and “Dear God.” In the final testament to a distinctive figure in British rock official said Pinette was in Pittsburgh to episode of Seinfeld, Pinette portrayed an history.—AP attend a wedding.—Reuters overweight man who gets carjacked at This CD cover image released by Chess Records shows ‘Going Back Home,’ by Wilko Johnson and Roger Daltrey.—AP