Guns N’Roses

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MUSIC MUSIC The Highwaymen The Highwaymen Live - American Outlaws Sony Legacy, 3CD + DVD Listen to the music made more than 25 years ago on The Highwaymen Live - American Outlaws and parallels to today’s contemporary country scene surface. The pop-minded dreck coming of modern Nashville hit factories largely rules the radio and charts, yet enterprising artists such as Chris Stapleton have recently given audiences a needed reminder of the style’s hardscrabble roots and literary directness. Crossover sensations Jason Isbell and Sturgill Simpson are further broadening the scope while remaining faithful to the genre’s classic sounds and soulful authenticity. Considered against the period backdrop of the Highwaymen, the more things change, the more they stay the same. More than three decades have passed since Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, Kris Kristofferson, and Waylon Jennings teamed up to form a supergroup true to the term in every sense. None of the four iconic singer-songwriters fit in with the increasingly preprocessed fare courted by major labels—or slick, arena-bound approach spearheaded by Garth Brooks. Already well into their 50s, they were deemed too old to matter anyway. For the first time in his career, Cash would soon be without a label. His mates struggled to maintain relevancy on solo records that seemingly disappeared from view the day after they were released. Still, on this enjoyable collection that documents the entirety of a two-hour concert staged in Uniondale, New York in March 1990—as well two Farm Aid appearances—the legends achieve a chemistry, commonality, charm, and conscientiousness that towers above nearly everything else that dates from an era that soon gave rise to line dancing. Onstage, the foursome’s outlaw songs and presence stand out as much for what they are as much as for what they never would be. Their professional backing band supplies requisite accompaniment without getting in the way. To be certain, The Highwaymen Live - American Outlaws doesn’t tell us much we don’t already know. A few arrangements (“Ring of Fire,” “Ragged Old Flag”) skew toward the showmanship expected from such an act during a period in which Las Vegas productions came into fashion. None of the versions of classics— such as a bounding, ornery “A Boy Named Sue” or stripped-back “Night Life”— tops the originals. And while the Telecaster-picking Jennings and company remain in great voice, they make no effort to disguise the fact the lines on their faces also crept into their ranges. But that’s the appeal— the genuineness, the authenticity, the refusal to bow to trends. No disguises, no fakery, no glitz, unless the latter falls into the category of patriotic comments or quick jokes. Seemingly free of any individualistic ego, the Highwaymen often step up to the microphone to share lines or duet on each other’s recognizable songs. They do so with an earnestness, modesty, laughter, and love that breathe deeper perspectives into tunes that have long since become standards. Whether the matterof-fact deliveries on “They Killed Him,” harmonizing on a harmonica-driven “City of New Orleans,” or winking playfulness during “The King Is Gone (So Are You)”, the longtime friends find kernels of truths in every performance and seemingly know the likes of such a gathering won’t again happen for decades—if ever. No moment showcases this spirit more than “Desperados Waiting for a Train,” penned by the recently late Guy Clark. A moving tribute to the working-class heroes in plain sight albeit yet continually overlooked by society, the Western song sounds here like a theme for these four giants—two of which have left the train station, and two of which know the train is coming e’er nearer. —Bob Gendron 64 TONE AUDIO NO.78 AUGUST 2016 65
Reference MUSIC Reorchestrated Shawn Colvin & Steve Earle There is only One Reference® Colvin & Earle Fantasy, LP or CD Audio Research introduced its first Reference Series components in 1995 with the intent of elevating the state-of-the-art to a new plateau, providing the most realistic and engaging musical experience possible. Those Reference products became iconic. Now, more than twenty years later, our singular goal remains. R The new Reference 6 line-stage and the Reference Phono 3 phono preamp are the latest products that oots-music veterans and longtime advance the art of music playback. friends Steve Earle and Shawn Colvin Here are just some of the latest advancements: mix newly written songs with classic • Reengineered analog stage featuring six 6H30 tubes • Larger power transformers and power supply covers on a debut collaboration that, • Proprietary coupling capacitors designed specifically for each product • Rigid, mass-loaded chassis for superior mechanical and electrical isolation predictably, comes across as a smart, solid affair. But two spectacular, spinetingling performances stand heads Everything we have done is simply a means to an end, to provide an unparalleled listening experience so real and engaging that you won’t want it to end. above the rest—and indicate the namesake artists still have plenty to say as Visit your Audio Research dealer to understand - There is only One Reference ® they past the midpoint of their careers. H I G H D E F I N I T I O N ® 66 TONE AUDIO NO.78 www.audioresearch.com The first highlight arrives with a cover of “You Were On My Mind.” Best known as a 1965 hit for the pop group We Five, the song was written in 1962 by the young Sylvia Fricker of the Canadian folk duo Ian & Sylvia. Fricker was a struggling and hopeful young bohemian when she penned the tune in Greenwich Village. Because of the dazzling and upbeat melody, you could almost miss the terrified pathos percolating beneath its sparkling surface. Within a few tightly scripted verses, it becomes clear the song’s narrator is a mess— drunk, sick, drowning in the blues and lost in memory. Despite these crippling emotions, it becomes equally clear that this is also a person trying to battle past the demons and move forward. It’s the perfect vehicle for the ragged-but-right Earle, a man who has overcome substance abuse and an early life routinely spent going off the rails. Colvin serves as his angelic foil, her harmonies darting like a seagull in the sky, a heavenly counterpoint to Earle’s earthbound voice. In their hands, the classic bristles with defiance against the vagaries of life, an artistic fist punched into the air. (continued) AUGUST 2016 67
Page 1 and 2: Music.Gear.Style. No.78 August 2016
Page 3 and 4: 96 tone style 90 Anker SoundCore Bl
Page 5 and 6: PUBLISHER’S LETTER WELCOME N03 TO
Page 7 and 8: SNAPSHOT SNAPSHOT Bruce Dickinson,
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Page 11 and 12: LIVE MUSIC LIVE MUSIC Guns N’ Ros
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Page 19 and 20: MUSIC “I’ll always be the girl
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Page 37 and 38: INTERVIEW INTERVIEW Buzz Osborne is
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Page 73 and 74: PREVIEW PREVIEW Audio Research PH-9
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Page 77 and 78: REVIEW On Johnny Cash and Willie Ne
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REVIEW Compact Performer The Conrad
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REVIEW REVIEW M Power-Packed Perfec
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REVIEW REVIEW By Rob Johnson At TON
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REVIEW Class A solid state amplifie
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FROM THE WEB Take TONE With You Lar
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BARGAINS Slummin’ The High-End Su
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Manufacturers Links LINKS Where to
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