Afterglow (Dr. John album)

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Afterglow
Studio album by
Dr. John
Released1995
StudioCapitol Studios, Hollywood, California; Bill Schnee Studios, North Hollywood, California
LabelBlue Thumb[1]
ProducerTommy LiPuma
Dr. John chronology
Television
(1994) 		Afterglow
(1995) 		The Very Best of Dr. John
(1995)

Afterglow is an album by the American musician Dr. John, released in 1995.[2][3] The majority of the tracks are covers of jazz and blues songs from the 1940s and 1950s; many of the songs were introduced to Dr. John by his parents.[4][5]

The album peaked at No. 7 on Billboard's Traditional Jazz Albums chart.[6] Dr. John supported the album by playing shows with the Afterglow Big Band.[7]

Production[edit]

The album was produced by Tommy LiPuma, with arrangements by John Clayton and Alan Broadbent.[8][9] It was engineered by Al Schmitt, who was nominated for a Grammy Award.[10] Dr. John used a 20-piece string section to back his 19-member band; Ray Brown led the rhythm section.[11][12]

"New York City Blues" and "There Must Be a Better World Somewhere" were cowritten by Dr. John and Doc Pomus.[8] "I Know What I've Got" is a cover of the Louis Jordan song; "Blue Skies" was written by Irving Berlin.[13][14]

Critical reception[edit]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[15]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[16]
MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide[17]
Orlando Sentinel[18]
(The New) Rolling Stone Album Guide[19]
The Tampa Tribune[12]
Windsor StarB[20]

The Guardian called the album an "elegant homage to the torch songs of yesteryear."[21] The Windsor Star deemed it "too polite to count as a Dr. John album, and too New Orleans-bluesy to be a legitimate big-band album."[20] The Globe and Mail considered it "a sweet exercise in pop nostalgia."[22]

The Orlando Sentinel noted that the album "harks back to the lush, big-band sound that served the singer, songwriter, pianist and guitarist so well on 1989's In a Sentimental Mood."[18] The New York Times stated that Dr. John "rambles nostalgically down pop-blues trails originally blazed by Ray Charles... The singing is sultry and swinging."[23] The Independent opined that the album is "spoilt by a showbiz orchestra that varnishes over his shaggy greatness."[24]

AllMusic praised Dr. John's "gravel-and-honey voice."[15] (The New) Rolling Stone Album Guide dismissed the album as "empty pop."[19]

Track listing[edit]

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."I Know What I've Got"Louis Jordan, Sid Robin5:01
2."Gee Baby Ain't I Good to You"Andy Razaf, Don Redman4:18
3."I'm Just a Lucky So-and-So"Duke Ellington, Mack David3:33
4."Blue Skies"Irving Berlin4:42
5."So Long"Irving Melsher, Remus Harris, Russ Morgan5:04
6."New York City Blues"Doc Pomus, Mac Rebennack4:00
7."Tell Me You'll Wait for Me"Charles Brown, Oscar Moore4:39
8."There Must Be a Better World Somewhere"Doc Pomus, Mac Rebennack5:21
9."I Still Think About You"Mac Rebennack4:18
10."I'm Confessin' (That I Love You)"Al Neiburg, Doc Daugherty, Ellis Reynolds4:27

Personnel[edit]

Technical

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Dr. John Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic.
  2. ^ Buckley, Peter (July 1, 2003). The Rough Guide to Rock. Rough Guides.
  3. ^ Bourne, Michael (Jul 1995). "Dr. John's temple of big band". DownBeat. Vol. 62, no. 7. p. 16.
  4. ^ Andrews, Marke (27 July 1995). "The good doctor is in — to music of the '40s, '50s". Vancouver Sun. p. C8.
  5. ^ Garcia, Chris (September 8, 1995). "Goin' with the Flow". The Press Democrat. p. D1.
  6. ^ "Dr. John". Billboard.
  7. ^ Reich, Howard (10 Sep 1995). "What's Ahead for the Ensembles". Arts & Entertainment. Chicago Tribune. p. 7.
  8. ^ a b Verna, Paul (Jul 15, 1995). "Album reviews — Afterglow by Dr. John". Billboard. Vol. 107, no. 28. p. 66.
  9. ^ Blake, Joseph (3 Aug 1995). "New Orleans sound". Entertainment Stories. Times Colonist. p. 1.
  10. ^ Daley, Dan (Mar 16, 1996). "Grammy winner Al Schmitt engineers creative ways of staying on top". Billboard. Vol. 108, no. 11. p. 59.
  11. ^ Levesque, Roger (9 July 1995). "The Doctor is In with soulful, sensitive, jazzy blues". Edmonton Journal. p. D4.
  12. ^ a b Booth, Philip (July 7, 1995). "Dr. John, Afterglow". Friday Extra!. The Tampa Tribune. p. 21.
  13. ^ Daly, Mike (August 3, 1995). "Afterglow". Green Guide. The Age. p. 20.
  14. ^ Marymont, Mark (October 18, 1995). "Dr. John, Afterglow". Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. p. 1F.
  15. ^ a b "Dr. John Afterglow". AllMusic.
  16. ^ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 3. MUZE. p. 112.
  17. ^ MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. p. 350.
  18. ^ a b Gettelman, Parry (28 July 1995). "Dr. John". Calendar. Orlando Sentinel. p. 9.
  19. ^ a b (The New) Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon & Schuster. 2004. p. 250.
  20. ^ a b Jones, Owen (6 July 1995). "CD reviews". Windsor Star. p. X23.
  21. ^ Spencer, Neil (25 June 1995). "Pop Releases". The Observer Review Page. The Guardian. p. 7.
  22. ^ Miller, Mark (22 July 1995). "Recordings Jazz Afterglow Dr. John". The Globe and Mail. p. C9.
  23. ^ Holden, Stephen (10 Nov 1995). "They're Adults, and Sound It". The New York Times. p. C1.
  24. ^ Barber, Nicholas (14 Jan 1996). "Rock; Swamp doctor's heap good medicine". The Critics. The Independent. p. 14.
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