Concert for Ronnie Montrose
Various Artists
RoMoCo
4 Stars
This very nice tribute concert to the late Ronnie Montrose took place in April of 2012, only about six weeks after the guitarist passed away. The players are famous and many and the songs come from Montrose's entire career. Half a dozen songs including "Voyager" and "Razor King" come from Ronnie's Gamma days, the Edgar Winter Group's "Free Ride" and "Frankenstein" are played (Montrose played lead guitar on those hits) and Sammy Hagar comes on to honor his bandmate in the group Montrose with hot versions of "Rock the Nation," "Space Station No. 5" and "One and a Half." Players come and go throughout the show; among them are Neal Schon, Joe Satriani, Denny Carmassi, Tommy Thayer, Steve Smith, Ricky Phillips, Marc Bonilla, Eric Singer and a dozen others.
Joni Mitchell
Woman of Heart & Mind/Paintings with Words and Music
Eagle Vision
3 ½ Stars
Another two-fer offering, the Woman of Heart & Mind film offers a very thorough look at Mitchell's life and career, beginning with her childhood in Saskatchewan, Canada where she endured a bout of polio. The film follows the development of Mitchell's artistic talents, both musical and as a painter, and also looks at significant life episodes like her experience at Woodstock, her romance with Graham Nash, and most poignantly, the giving-up of her baby when she was a teenager. Later in the film it's documented how Mitchell meets her adult daughter for the first time. Among the commentators are Nash and David Crosby, who produced Mitchell's first record. Painting with Words and Music finds Mitchell performing in a unique setting; she's painting amidst a gallery of her finished works and stops to perform a concert in the round for a small audience. "Big Yellow Taxi," "Black Crow," "Hejira" and "Woodstock" are among the 18-songs sung and the stories told.
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