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Wednesday, 25 May 2011 00:00

Written by Jim White

What kind of music do you think you would get by pairing, say, slide guitar wizard Roy Rogers, former Doors keyboardist Ray Manzarek, and literate lyrics from people like Warren Zevon and Beat poet Michael McClure?

You would get a new CD from Rogers and Manzarek called "Translucent Blues" (Blind Pig Records). And the music would be a successfully intriguing combination of the best of both their worlds -- blues, rock, jazz, poetry.

I know the idea sounds a little odd, like Bob Dylan's voice -- it shouldn't work, but it does. And the music itself sounds excellent -- a contemporary blend of the best of these old worlds. The Doors had blues influences running through their music. Rogers has always reached beyond the acoustic slide world that he's so good at. And music this good needs sharp, insightful lyrics.

The songs they've chosen are musical poetry at the top of its game. From "River of Madness," a dark ode to Los Angeles: "There's a river of madness runnin' through LA, there's a river of sadness deep inside the clay...." all driven hard by piano and guitar, as are most of the tracks.

You can hear echoes of the Doors, traces of blues, flashes of jazz and touches of rock.What you get, though, is a fine blend, like good whiskey, that's a lot more tastier than the sum of its parts.

It's hard to put into words the magical music world they've created here, but it works. It has its roots in some of the best of music past. It may not be the blues, or the rock, of the future, but it sure is enjoyable in the present.

Here's a video of the two performing an old Doors song. It's the closest I could find to the music on the album:

A slightly belated happy birthday to Bob Dylan, who turned 70 yesterday. He took a fascination with old folk and blues music and turned it into a legendary career as one of America's greatest songwriters and performing artists.

The greatest song ever written?

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