Customer Reviews

Welcome to Vh1 Storytellers

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Storytellers is a VH1program where in the artists reveal the rhymes and reasons behind some of their best songs. This CD is a compilation of many of those extraordinary live performances, reworked, often stripped down and well aged like a good mellow scotch. The stories fortunately are included in the booklet of the CD, but not available in the tape format.

A finer collection of the best Adult Contemporary music is hard to find these days. This is no boy-band...compilation. The artists on this 15 track set include big names such as David Bowie, Stevie Nicks, Counting Crows, Jewel, Dave Matthews, Lisa Loeb, James Taylor, Sheryl Crow, Natalie Merchant, Elvis Costello and The Bee Gees. When these musicians were young boys and girls, The Backstreet Boys were hardly even born and MTV had probably just begun.

Chrissie Hynde is almost full of pathos, pulls of a spirited rework of Back On The Chain Gang. Sheryl Crow, the modern-day rock chick teams up with powerhouse vocalist Stevie Nicks (Fleetwood Mac) on the former's Strong Enough. Lovely. Devoid of original back-up singers Graham Nash and David Crosby (from CSN&Y), James Taylor still sings Mexico is perfect JT style, honeyed and classic. John Mellencamp turns Jack & Diane into a hip-hop MC jamboree that is fun and all involving, Boy, he's sure having a good time on it. The recording captures the band rocking with the audience really neatly.

Lisa Loeb's Stay is a one woman-one guitar unplugged effort, eventually not a patch on the original album version. Jewel seems to get carried away in her own yodel and warble and in doing so gets highly entangled in Who Will Save Your Soul. Pity that.

Still there is enough nostalgia and great production of some of the finest music in the business on this set. Good listening and easily listen able many time over.

"VH1 Storytellers" has some definite high points, such as "Rain King" (Counting Crows), "Crash Into Me" (Dave Matthews & Tim Reynolds), "Regarding Steven" (Blues Traveler), and "Jack & Diane" (John Mellencamp). However, the low points on this CD are so low that it makes for a difficult listen, like the endless meandering at the end of "Who Will Save Your Soul?" (Jewel). All in all not a bad CD but, again, difficult to listen through from beginning to end. The best song on this CD is "Rain King". Give it a listen.

This show has produced some great musical moments. Unfortunatley, none of them are on this cd. Who can forget, Melissa Etheridge's { Testify} or Don Henley's ( Boys of Summer) and the list goes on. This collection does not live up to the show and I would recommend passing on this collection and hope for a Vol 2.

Nice collection from a cool show. Includes David Bowie, Stevie Nicks, Pretenders, Counting Crows, Dave Matthews, Lisa Loeb, John Popper, James Taylor, Sheryl Crow, Eurythmics, Natalie Merchant, John Melloncamp, Elvis Costello, The Bee Gees and "surprise...surprise" the strongest cut Who Will Save Your Soul by Jewel. They did it right by not including the preceding story of each song on the CD but they did print them on the liner notes, therefore you won't have to listed to intro over and over. But where's the original storyteller Ray Davies? And wouldn't Bruce Springsteen be great on this show?

I have listened to this cd more since I reviewed this last time. This a very good cd but they could've put some better songs on there. Stevie, Sheryl Crow, The Pretenders, and The Counting Crows are the best on here. Jewel is ok. What about Bonnie Raitt or Tom Petty? They also did storytellers. But this is must have.

Missing the stories! They are in the liner notes... but most of the poignancy of the "Storytellers" events is in the actual TELLING of the stories... I really love Counting Crows' "Rain King" but have a hard time listening it severed from Adam Duritz' introduction. Then again... after one or two "hears" of the stories it would likely get pretty old... after all, it is all about the music. Thus, four stars instead of three. As for the music: Those of you who must have your music polished and technically perfect... you'll never get the soul... as Jewel obviously does. So she's no Lady Day... but I was very impressed just the same. She is a throwback to that old Janis Joplin/Carole King/Joni Mitchell improvisational stuff from the '70s and I personally LOVE it. Best part... her little snicker (those who've heard it know what I'm talking about - she was having a good time). Stevie is wonderful, as is Bowie and Dave Mathews... but the hardest piece to ignore is that haunting, edgy Blues Traveler piece. It grows on me... at first I really didn't want to deal with it and then it occured to me that it's been a while since I heard commercial music that required one to "deal with it". Good show, John Popper... Annie Lennox and the guitar... let's have some more of that, Annie... Annie? Annie? Will we EVER have another fully original CD from you? John Cougar had fun but was absurd... one listen to that was enough. If I want rap I'll listen to Tupac. Let's not talk about Barry Gibb, and better leave that Lisa Loeb piece alone... a great rendition but WHY did they put it right behind Jewel? Pacing is not one of the stengths of this CD, but it is a collection after all. Still, the strength of five or six songs is worth the CD. I have read a review or two expressing dissapointment that only one song per artist is presented... well, that is the point of a collection... remember "MTV Unplugged"? If one wants more than one song per artist... buy their CD... (I'd say download it but RIP Napster...). OK, 4 stars it is. Buy this CD. It's a good one. Who knows... maybe your kids will even like it, John Cougar notwithstanding.

I find this compilation to be quite a surprise. After listening to the cd several times, I get the feeling that these artists were really enjoying themselves as they sang for the audience.

The one song that really sticks out above the rest is "Who Will Save Your Soul". Man, can Jewel wail! She has definetely 'on the groove' when she did this song. I like the duet she gets going with lead guitar, and then don't miss the transposing of the lyrics when she sings: '...there are addictions to feed and there are mouths to pay...' Great stuff!

Then, Stevie Nicks. Geez, "Edge of Seventeen" is right on the money. The congas on the right channel at the start, with the riff of guitar on the left channel. Don't miss the bass guitar. Dude really jams and right before she sings "And the days go by...", bass guitar gives new meaning to get down!

Yes, there might be some things missing here, but then again, after listening to this a few times you will find some really special moments. A true gem...

I bought this b/c I thought there would be stories that the artists would tell like the VH1 series. I was wrong. This cd is lost now, b.c I dont care about it.

Storytellers is a very good cd but it does have one down fall, Jewel. I love Jewel's music but the way she sings is so bad! The highlights are: Stevie's "Edge of 17", The Pretenders "Back on the Chain Gang", Counting Crows "Rain King", Sheryl Crow and Stevie Nicks "Strong Enough", Natalie Merchant's "Carnival" and John Mellencamp's "Jack and Diane". If you like any of these songs listed you should buy it!

Maybe the person mastering the recording had a bad day, but I found it difficult to listen to, even though I enjoy alot of the music. Also, the magic of the Storytellers series is lost, because they omitted the artist's telling the stories. The stories are printed in the liner notes. Jewel gives a very good romp in "Who will save your soul". John Popper of Blues Traveler does a very interesting piece, which is an open letter to Satan regarding Steven, a childhood friend who had several tragic moments in his life. "Rain King" is excellent! With all of these wonderful tracks, it is a shame the recording wasn't mastered very well. I have relegated the disc to my work desk, where it plays through cheap computer speakers. I would have rated it much lower, but the content it very good and is the only saving grace of the disc. Audiophiles need not apply, as you will be utterly disappointed.