Page 58 - BiTS_02_FEBRUARY_2025
P. 58
The two outstanding tracks on the album are for me, the Steely Dan classic,
‘Kid Charlemagne’, the story of the rise and fall of a drub baron in the
flower-power days of San Francisco, and the equally stunning ‘Nick Of Time’
written by Bonnie Raitt (here with a second appearance by Will Wilde).
Raitt won the Best Female Pop Vocal Performance at the 32nd Annual
Grammy Awards and had another win for the Album of the Year bearing
the same title.. In 2015 the song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of
Fame. This version is seriously funky with a super bass part driving it.
Outstanding!
All in all this is a cracking album which delivers high quality music delivered
by outstanding musicians. Get it now!
Ian K McKenzie
Trevor Babajack Steger—Six Foot Ten—
Own Label
In an effort to seek the same sort of ambience
achieved by the field recordings of the Alan
Lomax, John Lomax or Mack McCormick
Trevor Steger studiofied his home, which is a
narrow boat (Sirius) moored on the river Avon
(The width of a narrow boat is six foot, ten
inches, hence the title of the album).
Using two condenser microphones and with ‘baffles’ created by hanging
blankets and duvets, Trevor spent a week recording fifteen songs most
written by him, using two National guitars, Trevor’s self-made Weissenborn
and a bunch of harmonicas. Later Trevor brought to the ‘studio’, Jo
Chambers (violin), Jesse Benns (percussion), Lily Skinner (backing vocals),
Paul Jones (producer) and his mobile studio to record violin, percussion
and backing vocals.
Well, how does it work? Answer: Success! Trevor has achieved the
ambience he wanted. These songs, as we used to say, sound truly authentic,
just like those field recordings of close to 100 years ago. The principle
difference is in the musicianship. Trevor and his friends bring to all the
music a degree of accomplishment that is second to none. All in all this
album reveres its past whilst signalling that ‘revivalist’ does not mean ‘stuck
in the past. Wonderful!
Ian K McKenzie
