Just as good - if not better!
author: geobird
Well, Jay has done it again. This CD is as good, if not better in its own way, than "Boy Howdy." Again, he seems to have a lot of fun with the songs. "Playing on My Team" (the song) is an upbeat comment on the gay community. "Drive Time" is really fun - just words and a beat - but see if you can pick a story out of it. "Hey Arnie" owes a musical debt to Herman's Hermits. And believe it or not, Jay and the guys pull off a version of "My Boyfriend's Back" that gives the Angels a run for their money. Then Jay gets serious with "Swept Away," using a great sustained metaphor about letting go. Nice. And I loved "My Belinda" - the "fun with words" rhyming reminds me of Sondheim - really. Lovely duet, by the way. And we get another take on the "Bougainvillea Waltz," a song that really grows on you the more you hear it.
I like this CD very much, and I like "Boy Howdy" very much too. So, I'm not going to pick which is my favorite Jay Spears CD - they both are. You'll like them, too! And again - thanks for the music, Jay.
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Jay Spears: Gay Troubadour and Musical Alchemist Extraodinaire!
author: Gregory Fillar
Once again, Jay Spears brings joy and romance, love and laughter to his music loving audience. But this time he spices it all up with a dash of socio-political satire and "religious" fervor. He also takes a few "oldie goldie" 50s hits and gives them a good gay spin, literally and figuratively.
This man has talent! Yet despite his musical bravura and stylish bravado,he's still just one darn nice, normal gay guy. When it comes to Jay, what's not to like!
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Well, Spank My Eardrums! It's Finally Here!!!
author: Don P. Normann
The rating I've given is because: 1) your new album is FINALLY here, and 2) just based on the samples I heard, DUDE! You did the unthinkable! You TOPPED yourself! (Oh...should I rephrase that...? Hehheh...) But just based on what I heard between the title cut and "Smak Dem Krischuns (MY spelling) Down", my order will be in yer hot little...I mean hot BIG hands by this week's end! I can't wait to put together a folder of my faves from both albums on my new MP3 player...And I thought that "I Like Mike" was the best song you'd ever done...D-OH! Thanks again, Jay, and I'm still waiting to see you live and in the hunky 'beef-bo' flesh!--Donny N., Arlington, VA.
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Oh Hell yeah. (revision of review in 10/06's Challenge - GAAMC.org's newsletter)
author: Bill Stella, Highest Common Denominator
Playin' On My Team scores big by mixing sincerity, fun, and pop music tributes in a breakthrough style of manly homo-pop.
. Equal measures of humor and melancholy in the lyrics, of tradition and innovation in the songs, combine handsomely.
. I enjoy the hit parade of pop styles Jay pays tribute to. The title track's harmonies blend with good spirits to remind me of what made The Turtles' music memorable.
. Contact Ringo Starr's management – Jay's "I Will Always Love You" should be in his repertoire. (Bonus: A one-off "yeah, yeah, yeah" appears late in the song.)
. "Who Is This Guy?" might be "I Like Mike" redux: Melancholy morning-after musings, similar strumming as on "Mike", but in a minor key and joined by an unsettled, unsettling fiddling (by Darius Campo) are as beautiful in performance as those inescapable next day questions are unwelcome. It reminds me of the Ringo-featured Beatles song "Don't Let Me Down" if it had transmuted into something unassailably sincere and honest.
. Jay revises traditional musical forms for his own purposes. "Swept Away" recalls upbeat (but cautionary), country-flavored storysongs. "Hey Arnie" lovingly rips off the banjo intro from Herman's Hermits' "Mrs. Brown You've Got A Lovely Daughter", reviving its skiffle style. And there's one from my dream list of "Songs Gay Men Should Cover": The Angels' "My Boyfriend's Back".
. "Playin'"s standout track is "Drive Time": it brilliantly takes on the Hell that is heavy traffic. The manic rhythm, like Don Henley's Dirty Laundry's "Kick 'em when they're up / Kick 'em when they're down" hook, powers rhythmic, uniquely-shifting spoken vocals over deceptively familiar-sounding dance tracks. As if a Devo tour bus driven by Jon Anderson (Yes) singing baritone, with guests The Bonzo Dog Band onboard had crashed into a studio where Paul McCartney was messing around for hits and giggles, "Drive Time"'s head-on impact is dead funny - and true; the abstract idea elements collide cleanly to release a kind of music concrete.
. But the game "Playin'" isn't without errors. Spots could leave stronger impressions if a critical ear had noted places that needed shoring up. Every song (except "Drive Time") could have used taking another crack at singing some spots more in tune. Ditto a few scattered guitar lines not tuned to each other (most noticeably in the title track). And I appreciate the history lesson of "Smak Dem Christians Down" more than its execution.
. The final score for Playin' On My Team shows Jay Spears wins by putting up big numbers – but with stretches of off-sides play one can't ignore. But when it's over, it sends me home engaged and delighted and, like a good night out at the game, ready for bed. Manly, yes – But I like it, too. Oh Hell yeah.
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