Customer Reviews

Stone Steel & Bright Lights

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Stone, Steel and Bright Lights is a great album, and you don't have to be familiar with Farrar's solo work to enjoy it. The album is a live collection of 15 songs from Farrar's solo albums, 2 new (awesome) originals, and 2 killer covers to close the album - Lucifer Sam from the Syd Barrett era Pink Floyd and Neil Young's Like A Hurricane. The collection is from Farrar's recent tour with Canyon.

Since Farrar put Son Volt on hiatus, he's done basically 2 types of concerts. One of which is a duo with guitar virtuoso Mark Spencer, although with other musicians joining them occaisonally. Farrar plays mostly acoustic when he plays with Spencer. The two put on a great show and have a real feel for what the other one is doing. But without bass and drums and a full band, it's often a bit mellower version of some of Farrar's tunes. Farrar has a live album of this version of his live show available on his website, called Live In Seattle.

But in the last year, Farrar has gone on the road with a full band, including a couple of tours with Canyon, a 5 piece (at the time) band from the Washington, DC area. And with this lineup, Farrar changes the instrumentation and the arrangements of some songs and, in short, it's great music. The songs with Canyon run the gamut from pretty, mid tempo tunes to full fledged electric rockers. And there are two powerful Farrar solo acoustic songs.

If you've been a Farrar fan from his days in Uncle Tupelo and Son Volt but have dropped him from your radar since he's been solo, this is the album to get to rediscover him. I've heard some people didn't like the heavier production of Farrar's Sebastopol album, others had trouble getting into the quieter sounds of Terroir Blues. (Personally, I love both albums.) But Stone, Steel and Bright Lights takes a half dozen or so of the best of both albums, fleshes them out with a live band, changes up the arrangement on some, adds the great sound from Canyon's 2 guitarists and keyboard player , and the results are outstanding ... the Sebastopol songs have the live feel some think are missing on the studio verson ... the Terroir Blues songs have the muscle that's not on the studio version. A song like Heart on the Ground finishes with explosive Farrar electric guitar .. Fool King's Crown is more electric, harder and bluesier than the studio version, Clear Day Thunder just explodes.

The two new originals are "Doesn't Have To Be This Way", taped at a sound check with the full band and "Six String Belief", which features a tremendous guitar riff, is just Farrar on acoustic guitar. Both song have biting lyrics - the first about the state of our country, the latter about the music industry.

The album also comes with a DVD of a Farrar with Canyon show in San Francisco. Farrar breaks out an awesome bluesy harmonica solo in "Damn Shame" that I've never seen him do on that song. He solos on "Lucifer Sam" before the rest of the band comes out to join him. And "Like A Hurricane" to close the set is thundering.

Farrar has been doing great work since putting Son Volt on hold, although mostly under the radar. Stone, Steel and Bright Lights is an outstanding example of what he's been up to the last few years, and what some fans may have been missing.

While the name just says Jay Farrar on the title, it is the performance of Canyon in a backup role which makes this such a successful album/DVD combo.

I have been a huge fan of Jay's solo projects, but it seemed as if something was missing from them. In Stone, Steel & Bright Lights Canyon provides a wonderful wall of sound that brings a more vibrant life to the collection of Jay Farrar's songs from his three solo releases. Everyone who was involved with Uncle Tupelo seems more interested in playing with the knobs in the mixing studio than just playing their instruments, the live format prevents Jay from taking that route on his own songs. It is a pleasant diversion for the listeners sake.

The two new songs on this album, Doesn't Have to Be This Way and Six String Belief are very impressive and I think his best creations since Greenwich Time(which I was pleased to see not just on the album but on the DVD as well). For me the highlights of his previous released material were: Vitamins, Feed Kill Chain, All Your Might, Clear Day Thunder, and Cahokian.

The two covers, Lucifer Sam and Like a Hurricane, are simply outstanding both on the album and DVD. It gives both Jay and Canyon a chance to get away from the core material and rock out. And in a way it brings up what I think is the one weakness in this album. It would be nice to see Jay take the same kind of turn it up and spit it out attitude to some of his own songs that he eagerly takes to the covers.

The DVD isn't that flashy, and it has most of the songs that are on the album. However just seeing the on stage antics of one Canyon band member itself is worth several viewings. I prefer the DVD version of the covers to the album versions.

I would hesitate to call this a Best Of album for Farrar's solo work, the ommission of Barstow and more of the original songs on ThirdShiftGrottoSlack was upsetting to me at least, but it is THE place for anyone interested in Jay's solo career to get started.

I was so fortunate to attend the January 23rd show at Slim's in San Francisco that is included, in part, on the bonus DVD of this album (you can see me next to the stage, on the right side, bobbing my head a bit). Slim's club is basically a simple box that holds maybe 400 people at most, but it has excellent acoustics and a great, bluesy atmosphere to it. It's one of those places that looks so simple on the outside but has so much soul to it, and I think the venue fit Farrar perfectly. Truth be told, the bonus DVD was why I bought this album, but when I listened to the accompanying CD, I was amazed. The two new tracks ("6 String Belief" and "Doesn't Have To Be This Way") are energetic and catchy and carry a strong message to them...they really make the CD worth it in and of themselves. And if that wasn't enough, you're also treated to wonderful live versions of his best solo work (my personal favorite being "Cahokian", which is a bit too sleepy for my tastes on the album, but is fantastic live) and his incredible covers of "Like A Hurricane" and "Lucifer Sam", both of which make one wonder (and hope) that Farrar will bring some of that remarkable energy into his third solo album, to be released in the indefinite future. Clear Day Thunder, Damn Shame, and Feel Free deserve similar praise; they got the crowd jumping in SF (the closest thing Farrar will ever see to moshing, I suppose) and will make you want to do so in your living room as well. The whole album is simply infectiously energetic...if I could give 6 stars to this album, I would. It stands heads and shoulders above most anything in my music collection. For anybody who even remotely likes Farrar, you have to have this album.

After hearing the outstanding and different sounding last two albums from Farrar, this one has reached the high peak performance from "Sebastapol" and "Terroir Blues". However, there are some differences. I thought the last two albums were outstanding, but some people thought they were lacking in something, perhaps too stripped down. A touring band has been added and the full instrumentation is there, adding tons of incredible guitars to the songs from the last two albums. The result, an incredibly fuller sound that brings out each song's absolute beauty.
I cannot emphasize how amazing this album is, and the adding of the new songs such as "Doesn't have to be this way" and "Six-string belief", two lyrically charged songs about the state of the world and music. Jay has never been so blatently political since Uncle Tupelo, so things with this government must be getting to everyone these days.
The two covers are awesome as well. In summary, this is the best live record I have bought in a long time, and the sound quality is excellent along with Jays voice. He is a truely amazingly gifted musician and songwriter, and no, he is not Neil Young, but all the fans who have been down with him with the last two albums should rediscover his greatness, which to me, has never been lost.

A true gem to the world of music!

Wilco sounds like an outtake compared to this. With early REM and Neil Young influences, along with his own unique brand of folk and rock Jay is in a class by himself. Canyon adds a great touch to these songs. This is the best live album by anyone in a long, long time. From the opening acoustics to the Like a Hurricane jam at the end, this is a classic live album.
No one should pass on this one.

I feel that negative reviews are almost always an exaggeration, and it is surely the case here. Jay Farrar is the alt-country love child people seem to love to hate. But they love to hate him because they just loved Son Volt (and Uncle Tupelo) so much. That's history folks. And face it, he's talented and has the voice that hundreds of men try to emulate. This album is certainly not a clone of Son Volt's, but he's not doing Son Volt stuff here. It's a solid album, and worth having in your collection. Listen for yourself.

I was at the Orange Peel concert in Asheville, NC where a couple of cuts on the album were recorded. It is a shame that no more people were there to experience what was one of the best live shows I have seen. Canyon opened and set the stage for a terrific night. They would have been worth the admission price and were a perfect compliment to Jay Farrar's music and style.

Jay's performance was very strong, mixing the lastest material with Son Volt and ending with a full out rocking version of "Hurricane" that would have made Neil proud.

This recording almost captures the fun of the live show! I definitely recommend this collection to fans (and make sure you share it with those who don't yet know how good this music is).

I bought this CD because I'm a huge fan of Jay, but wondered if it would just be a rehashing of his solo stuff. Well, it didn't take long to figure out that wasn't the case. This mostly acoustic set adds a new sound and dimension to these songs. To me, the versions on this CD are better than the originals on his solo albums. The songs are stripped down to their bare bones, and Jay plays and sings with the heart and soul that only he can. Plus the version of Like a Hurricane is a wonderful addition....This CD is a must have for this year.

This really is a superb live album with Canyon as the Jay's back up and what a great band they are !Jay kicks off the show with some solo numbers and his performance is really strong,boy,can he play that harp! I don't know if people would agree,but with the help of Canyon it's like going back to the glory days of Son Volt!"Terroir Blues" had some great songs,but was patchy and i thought Jay was taking himself too seriously,but he seems to be enjoying himself on this album.
Canyon beef up the sound on some of Jay's older material and "Lucifer Sam " and "Like a Hurricane" are amazing
As for the DVD,well,it's priceless,Jay at the peak of his powers !This is well worth buying,the best thing he's done for awhile!
Check out canyons "Live in NYC" where the do a stunning version of Neil Young's "Cortez the Killer"
One click it !!!!

I love this guy. He is the reason why I really got into country music. This cd is a bit different from the Uncle Tupelo and Son Volt stuff...more mature. Jay is the kind of songwriter who can be experimental without seeming artsy-fartsy or aloof. This live album is very roots-rock, with a few country-style tracks. I recommend it over any newer Wilco album, and I definitely recommend it to anyone who likes the old UT stuff.