While studio albums become less prominent to the masses, it’s nice to know you can still get your hands on new music from treasured vintage rock artists. Here’s five from 2019 we kinda liked…
Western Stars
Bruce Springsteen
Opening with droplet-like acoustic, accented vocal, and sweeping strings, Bruce Springsteen picks up his listener on “Hitch Hikin’” and delivers us into Western Stars, his 19th album. The Boss’ first album of all-new material in seven years, this conceptual stab seems to be expanding on the dreary windswept vistas Springsteen visited on Nebraska and The Ghost of Tom Joad.
1000 Hands
Jon Anderson
Since being shown the door by Yes in 2008, Jon Anderson has elevated himself to an astonishing level of progressive music practitioner. If his random solo epics or collaborations with Jean-Luc Ponty and Roine Stolt weren’t adventurous and creative enough, 1000 Hands will surely convince anyone with ears and a modicum of taste that the original singer of Yes is defying age and circumstance with a remarkably inspiring and uplifting piece of work.
Coming Closer To The Day
Robin Trower
A funk blues “Diving Bell” opens Robin Trower’s 2019 release Coming Closer To The Day. With heavy pull-offs and ‘wah wah’ leading right out of the gate here, it’s evident that this 73-year-old Stratocaster master is in top form. The title track manages a mid-tempo, mournful vibe, reminiscent of Trower’s “Bridge Of Sighs.” With Trower handling vocals, as well as guitar, I just love how his lived-in voice sounds here and on the other tracks.
Space Between
Sammy Hagar & The Circle
During a brief exchange on the red carpet in 2014, I asked Sammy Hagar about making albums, and he said in today’s music industry, it’s not about “spending a million dollars on a record and selling 125,000 copies.” It’s more, he added, about “experimenting and having fun.” Of course, when you consider Hagar’s whole modus operandi, the Cabo Wabo lifestyle, not to mention some sound business moves that have made him a very wealthy man, the “having fun” is pretty much a given. Space Between — the first album of all-new original material from Hagar and his band the Circle, which includes bassist Michael Anthony, guitarist Van Johnson, and drummer Jason Bonham — is not only fun-filled and experimental; it may be the best record Hagar has made since his days with Van Halen.
