Send "Leon Russell " Ringtones to your Cell 
| Popmatters |
 It’s safe to say that the last two years have been a bit of a renaissance for Leon Russell. Despite penning songs as venerated as “A Song for You” and “Superstar” (it’s the one with the line “Don’t you remember you told me you loved me, baby?” that’s become an American Idol standby) and recording six gold records in the 1970s, Russell was mostly forgotten before his acolyte Elton John unearthed him with last year’s collaboration The Union. That album put Russell back in the public consciousness in a big way: it landed at #3 on Rolling Stone‘s list of the best albums of 2010 and earned Russell and John a Grammy nomination and an appearance on Saturday Night Live.It should come as no surprise, then, that Omnivore saw fit to release Live in Japan, a concert recording available only in Japan until now. The choice of locale is certainly no coincidence; the album’s title refers to Russell’s 1973 show at Tokyo’s famous Nippon Budokan arena, where the Beatles made their Japanese debut and Cheap Trick recorded their essential Cheap Trick at Budokan. The arena only holds about 14,000 spectators at capacity, but Russell’s performance there is nothing if not outsized; Russell and his band are full of bombastic energy throughout, keeping the proverbial volume at 11. The second half of the album is gleaned from an earlier show in Houston, and it features highlights like the aforementioned “Superstar” (here under its original title, “Groupie (Superstar)”, and sung by Kathi McDonald) and an electrifying cover of the Rolling Stones’ “Jumpin’ Jack Flash”. But Live in Japan‘s tone is more along the lines of Russell’s Budokan set. More than anything, Russell seems determined to act as an ambassador of homegrown American music. He begins the concert like a revival, putting his backup singers front-and-center for two big gospel numbers. Russell’s backup singers are a huge part of this recording, often mixed higher than Russell himself, and that’s one of the few things that prevents Live in Japan from being an essential album. On more than one song, one of the backup singers is painfully flat; you can tell what note she’s trying to sing, and how it fits into the chord, but it creates a really rough sense of cognitive dissonance, especially if you’re a musician....full text |
| Allmusic |
| Released roughly a year after Leon Russell performed an unlikely mainstream comeback with the assistance of Elton John, the 2011 disc Live in Japan contains a wealth of live performances from Russell at his peak. The first section of the record was indeed recorded at Budokan in Japan while Leon was on tour in 1973, running through hits like “Tight Rope,” folding “A Song for You” into a medley, and generally rocking like a madman. The second section is taken from a 1971 show from Houston, recordings that are rowdier and rougher, both in performance and audio. Even if this is a bit of a ragged, woolly comp, it has plenty to offer: despite the presence of 1973’s Leon Live, there aren’t many live records of Russell in full flight, so this taste of him rocking ferociously is indeed welcome....full text |
| Theseconddisc |
| Can anyone dispute that the Master of Space and Time has returned? Leon Russell is currently touring the country with none other than Bob Dylan, riding the wave of adulation he’s received for 2010′s high-profile Elton John collaboration The Union, as well as an induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. On August 9, the Omnivore label will remind listeners of just why Russell is so revered today. On that date, Omnivore will release Live in Japan, restoring to a print a 1974 Japan-only LP documenting Russell’s November 8, 1973 stand at Tokyo’s Budokan Hall. But wait, there’s more! Reissue producer, Omnivore co-founder and Rhino alumnus Cheryl Pawelski has added seven more tracks, all taken from a Houston, Texas show at the Sam Houston Coliseum recorded November 22, 1971. The Houston performance was the first show of his 1971 U.S. tour, after he and the newly formed Shelter People band had taken to the road in late 1970, occasionally teaming with then-newcomer Elton John. The nine Live in Japan tracks are all new to CD, while the 1971 gig has never appeared on LP or CD. A native of Oklahoma, the former Claude Russell Bridges honed his craft first as a pianist on the local club circuit and then as one of the top-flight session men of Los Angeles’ so-called “Wrecking Crew.” You can hear Russell tickling the ivories on recordings by Phil Spector, The Beach Boys and even Frank Sinatra. It wasn’t long before he allied himself with producer Snuff Garrett, for whom he not only arranged Gary Lewis and the Playboys’ “This Diamond Ring” but co-wrote the group’s hits “Everybody Loves a Clown” and “She’s Just My Style.” These pop classics gave little indication, though, of where Russell would take his career next. After recording as the leader of the “Midnight String Quartet” and the Asylum Choir (with Marc Benno), Russell began his proper solo career with 1970′s Leon Russell, released on Shelter Records, a joint venture of Russell and Englishman Denny Cordell. That album was just the first to demonstrate his mastery of rock, soul, gospel, country, blues and even psychedelia during his long, distinguished career. What can you expect from this heaping helping of Leon Russell? Hit the jump! Omnivore’s expanded Live in Japan offers some of Russell’s greatest songs, among them “Tight Rope,” “Roll Away the Stone,” “A Song for You” and “Groupie (Superstar),” immortalized by Bonnie Bramlett, Rita Coolidge, Bette Midler and of course, Karen Carpenter. Russell offers his smoking rendition of the Rolling Stones’ “Jumpin’ Jack Flash,” which he also performed at The Concert for Bangladesh, plus other covers in the form of “Roll Over Beethoven” and even The Wizard of Oz’s “Over the Rainbow,” joined with Russell’s own “God Put a Rainbow” performed with his Black Grass background singers. These sixteen tracks prove why Russell’s live show was considered one of the most electric and combustible in the annals of rock. Liner notes for Live in Japan were penned by Leon Russell historian Steve Todoroff, author of the upcoming book Longhair Music: The Songs And Sessions Of Leon Russell, and by Rev. Patrick Henderson, a member of the touring band for the 1973 Japan tour and the composer of “Heaven,” which opens the album. This is the latest of a line of fine new releases from Omnivore, founded in 2010 by Pawelski, Greg Allen, and Brad Rosenberger. Leon Russell’s Live in Japan hits stores on August 9....full text |
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