Mango Music Mambo
author: Kathi
CD Baby took my order seamlessly online; it seemed as if I turned around and MANGO MUSIC was at my door. Sophie, umbrella cockatoo, the other birds and I were dancing around the house within minutes. Mango Music is another Rick Steffen treasure. There are moments the instrumentals take your breath away. Overall, as juicy as it's namesake. Thanks to all!
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A must for your trop rock collection.
author: Art Perry
The latest release from talented singer/songwriter Rick Steffen is called Mango Music. As with his past efforts, Rick tries his hand at many different genres, but it's even more apparent, and successful, this time out. Yes, make no mistake that Steffen fits in nicely under the general heading of "Trop Rock", the term that has come to describe the musical progeny of Jimmy Buffett, but there is much more here than sipping frozen concoctions under a palm tree. With Mango Music, he seems to go in many different directions - reggae, blues, calypso, samba, folk, even a touch of zydeco - all of which keeps the album fresh and interesting through multiple listenings.
Rick has developed into a fine songwriter, penning eleven of the dozen songs represented here. Thoughtful lyrics on subjects ranging from the demons of technology to love lost in paradise to politics to good old-fashioned love songs are all here in this fine collection. It was with some trepidation that I first listened to the lone cover song, that old protest chestnut, "Where Have All The Flowers Gone." I have always found this song to be not only moving but depressing as well, and it didn't seem to be the kind of song that Rick would include in an album of largely tropical rhythms. But when I listened to this arrangement, I heard something that has only been successfully pulled off once before to my recollection. By setting Pete Seeger's moody lyrics to an upbeat, reggae rhythm, the song takes on a completely different feel, much as Willy Deville did by teaming up the dark lyrics of "Hey Joe" with a mariachi backdrop. Who says that protest songs have to sound depressing?
Musically, Steffen and band have never sounded better. From the polish of veteran Caribbean guitarist Clarence Wares to the wail of bluesman Mark Hodgson's soulful harp, one gets the impression this line-up can take Rick in any direction he wants to go. And they prove just that with "Internet Overload". Reading the liner notes prior to listening to this track, I noted that the band was attempting a zydeco tune, but I couldn't help but notice that the prerequisite accordion was nowhere to be seen. To my surprise and utter delight, Rick pulls some musical slight of hand from up his sleeve and substitutes Hodgson's harmonica - and it works!
I've been playing Rick Steffen music for years, both on the air and at home. For serious trop rock collectors, Mango Music is a must for your collection. For those who may just be exploring this genre for the first time, this will serve as an excellent primer for you. From insightful lyrics to top notch musicianship, Mango Music has it all.
Art Perry
WKHS 90.5
Worton/Baltimore, MD
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