Wonder Bar

Martin Sexton | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 10, 2000)
• Original Release Date: October 10, 2000
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Atlantic
• ASIN: B00004YNGQ
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #147,188 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not his best, and it's too damn bad, November 24, 2000

By 

Maggie Booher (Northfield, MN USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Wonder Bar (Audio CD)

The only people who know who Martin Sexton is are absolute groupies. I've followed him around on his tours as much as I can provided I'm a poor college student- and I'm sorry to say that none of his albums will come close to his live power. So if you can't go to a concert and you're looking for a great album, one of those to listen to in the dark while sitting on the porch, this is a good one. Good blend of peppy, melancholy, and singable melodies. However, it just doesn't live up to its potential. It pales in comparison to "Black Sheep." And while I'm glad Atlantic Records signed him on and he'll have a wider audience, I think they have done nothing good for his sound. Why can't major record labels just accept folkies as they are and not try to recreate them for the masses? Buy Black Sheep first, then In the Journey, then the American, then this one....

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Growth and Change, October 23, 2000

By 

"ecalnan" (Boston, MA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Wonder Bar (Audio CD)

To date, I have not reviewed any albums on this site - however, when I read some of the comments about Marty Sexton's latest effort, I felt compelled.

Musicians cannot (and in many cases Choose not to) live off a career of acoustic live albums that showcase their talents in the rawest of settings. Although these efforts may highlight some of their finest talents, fortunately, many of them choose to expand their creative threshholds and embrace new sounds, influences and production environments.

As many have noted, Martin Sexton is a rare, unique talent and for those of you who haven't seen him live - do yourself a favor - he is still at the stage of his career that you can pay 15 bucks and actually see him without looking at a jumbotron in some stadium with 50,000 others.

This record is one that takes him in a new direction - one that is different from his previous work, but no less intriguing. He taps his influences from gospel, blues, rock and others to push forward a diverse, soulful effort that many of todays bands who just focus on volume should take notice of.

If this is your first Martin Sexton purchase, compliment it with a copy of Black Sheep and a live show and you will surely be hooked for life.

Good work Marty ! Keep it up.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Eclectic Masterpiece!, February 15, 2001

By 

R. Stolzer (WI USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Wonder Bar (Audio CD)

Okay, I have to admit that when I stuck Wonder Bar in my CD player for the first time and "Angeline" starting belting out of the speakers, I wasn't quite prepared. But by the time the CD was over, I was hooked, especially by "Faith on the Table". This is a wonderfully rich CD. What some folks considered over-produced, I look at as being beautifully layered. I'm struck by Sexton's eclectic use of instruments, especially his own voice. As I listened more and more, I noticed that Sexton would ocassionally use his own breath to punctuate a point in the music. What I found interesting is that I come to expect that breath when I'm listening now.

Beyond the instruments and Sexton's incredible voice, I found the lyrics to be quite moving. "Real Man" is one of my favorite songs because of the lyrics. The lines: "For so many years I believed I was broken. So medicine sweet and the leaves I was smoking. Told me I was strong, righteous and firm. But only if I comply and stay in the terms. With the deal made between weakness and shame. To shelter me from the price of my pain. I'm real I'm a real man yes I am" struck me the first time I heard the song. The same is true from some of the lyrics from "Free World".

I've never seen Sexton in concert, though I've heard (and read in these reviews) that he puts on an incredible show. I only have his CDs to go by and that's plenty. This CD is not "Black Sheep". In some ways, I hate to say that it is better, because it's really apples and oranges. But Wonder Bar has a different kind of richness to it. It's definitely more of a rockin' CD and it has replaced Black Sheep as my favorite Martin Sexton CD.