Sound Off: Music CD Review

Live In London

(Columbia)

It has been 15 years since Leonard Cohen last toured. And in that time, the songwriter and poet has continued to release original work, sued his former manager, and spent several years as a practicing Buddhist monk in a monastery.

When Cohen made the decision to return to the stage last year, most of the shows sold out within minutes, prompting the tour to be extended into 2009.

"Live in London" captures Cohen's performance at the cavernous O2 Arena. While one might think that a venue as massive as O2 might take away from the intimate feeling conveyed by many of Cohen's recordings, once you hear the beauty of the singer's now 73-year-old voice, it is as if he is singing only to you.

On the two CDs that contain the performance, Cohen runs through 26 songs from throughout his career, including "Bird on a Wire," "Everybody Knows," "I'm Your Man," and "First We Take Manhattan." Cohen's performance of "Hallelujah" is particularly sublime. At 74 years of age, Cohen is still at the top of his game, still able to give the listener goose bumps. God bless him.

Download These: "Hallelujah," "Everybody Knows," "Dance Me to the End of Love"

Midnight Shift

(Awendaw Green)

Every day in any number of cities around the world, teenage boys and girls get the idea to start a band. Some of those ventures don't even make it through the first rehearsal. But for those that do, the thrill of making it all come together can be intoxicating, even if the band never actually plays a gig.

The Whisperjets certainly made it past that all-important first rehearsal, and have even played a few shows around town. Even though all of the band's members are still in high school, The Whisperjets' music displays a playful maturity that is helped along by encouragement from local musicians who have recognized the band's talent and assist on this debut EP.

Mark Bryan produces the title track, and plays mandolin on "Just What You Did." Leslie front man Sadler Vaden contributes a guitar solo on the title track, while Danielle Howle and Catherine Dudley lend their respective talents to "Song for No One in Mind."

My personal favorite tracks on the EP are "Rob Zombie" and the ska-influenced title track. For a group of high school musicians, this is a surprisingly together and polished release.

Download These: "Midnight Shift," "Rob Zombie," "Song for No One in Mind"

Live at Chicagofest

(Shout!Factory)

When Muddy Waters passed away in 1983, a bit of the blues died with him. The legendary performer was one of the true greats in that music genre, and now blues fans can catch one of Waters' last performances on "Live at Chicagofest," which documents the blues master's performance at Chicago's Navy Pier in 1981.

Despite being almost 70 years old at the time, Waters showed the huge crowd that had turned out for his performance that he still had what had put him at the top of the blues heap in the first place.

Fellow blues man Johnny Winter joins Waters onstage while Waters' band plows through a number of hits, including "Mannish Boy," "Baby Please Don't Go," "I'm a King Bee," and "Got My Mojo Working."

The video and sound is a little rough in some places, but overall this performance will appeal to any of Waters' fans. It's a great chance to see live footage of the guy who basically gave the Rolling Stones its band name, and is enshrined in the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame.