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N. O. refugee still has 'The Big Easy' on his mind

"PiaNOLA Live," Henry Butler (Basin Street Records,

****

)

This April 29 CD shows that displaced New Orleans piano institution Henry Butler has always had a wonderful feel for the music of his hometown. He lives in Denver since Katrina destroyed his home, but he taped nearly every show over the years, playing at many Big Easy venues including two daily shows at the Hilton during the 1970s.

The wide-ranging depth and complexity of Butler's piano ability is extremely impressive, and easily seen on every song ranging from the 1928 jazz standard that opens the album, "Basin St. Blues," to "North American Idiosyncrasies," composed by one of Henry's teachers, the late, great Alvin Batiste, at the Louisiana State School for the Blind.

My favorites are the instrumental numbers, but Butler gets in plentiful piano between verses on the vocal numbers as well. I'm not fond of the slowed-down versions of "You Are My Sunshine" and "Dock of the Bay," but that's personal preference. Grab a copy of this one locally or order online at www.basinstrecords.com.

"Under Review 1964-1974," Van Morrison (Sexy Intellectual,

****½

)

Very few artists have been as individualistic and identifiable as Van Morrison since he first emerged on the national stage in the early 1960s, singing "Gloria" with THEM. That song began an unparalleled decade of creativity that Morrison hasn't equaled since, and this mid-April DVD documents those days along with the incendiary live shows, songwriting and creative processes.

I must admit to being aware of Van only after hearing his first solo hit, "Brown Eyed Girl," but I followed along faithfully after that until after the wonderful "Tupelo Honey" album, though I didn't own many long-players ("Moondance," "Astral Weeks" and others) until more recently on CD.

Despite a couple of misfires noted by the critics and analysts here, these are the songs most folks really cherish when they think of Van the Man. Get your copy of this far-ranging DVD at local video/music stores or shop online at www.mvdvisual.com.

"Aural Amphetamine: Metallica & The Dawn of Thrash," (Sexy Intellectual,

***

)

This mid-April DVD explores how a Bay Area band, inspired by a New Wave of British Heavy Metal, became the cornerstone of a newer, faster, harder type of music. NWOBHM, and then thrash, retained the DIY spirit of punk rock while appropriating influences ranging from Black Sabbath to classical music.

The DVD tells about some NWOBHM bands, like Diamond Head, as well as mentioning some early U.S. examples of this new brand of metal, like Slayer. Metallica, of course, eventually went beyond the boundaries of thrash to become major-league rock stars. The program details their beginnings, early recordings and other information familiar to fans, but it also gives props to others who had less worldwide success.