Daniel Amos is one of my favourite bands. Period. I'll buy just about anything with their name on it (not including t-shirts, bumper stickers, or action figures) to support the band. More than once I've shelled out big bucks (Canadian) to get pre-releases to help finance a project. They're that good.

Daniel Amos is one of few true enigmas in popular music. They evolved out of the Jesus Music culture of the mid 70's in California, and were a loose country rock group. The boys were musically gifted (not gifted as in retarded, but gifted as in, well, gifted), and soon grew out of their pigeon hole, and released one of the few watershed albums in Christian Music - the Mike Stone produced Horrendous Disc. It blew the cowboy hats off the band forever (nearly). Alarma followed quickly on its heals. It was a music lover's delight, but sent the casual fan looking for cover.

The real story about the inner workings of Daniel Amos will probably never see the light of day, which is a good thing (not counting liner notes by Larry Norman, or counter-investigative CCM articles - hey my tongue's in my cheek!). There's been enough idle speculation on the band and it's various incarnations to fill a good sized box (okay, it should be a shoe-box, but it would be at least a size 12). Suffice to say it just doesn't matter. What does matter is the music. DA has released a lot of great music, some greater than others. Fans rejoice all over the world at the prospect of new music from the band. Terry Taylor is the principle songwriter and he seems to have an inexhaustible muse (check out the side projects and solo work over recent years and it becomes truly awe inspiring, and rather annoying to us pretend songwriters). Over the years the band has gone through a number of minor line up changes, but remains to this day a solid group of artists. Heck, how many bands have managed to stay fresh, and dance on the edge of the razor both lyrically and musically for more than 25 years?

So here's to DA, long may they run (or have the runs depending on where they eat dinner).

Many of their older releases are out of print and go for a small fortune on e-bay, but there's almost always something new to see at their site, which is very well maintained (shameless plug). Check 'em out, and support the band - buy something while you're there. DANIELAMOS.COM

Daniel Amos (©1976 Maranatha)

The Songs: Jesus Is Jehovah To Me / The Bible / Abidin' / William / Prelude - Servant's Prayer / Don't Light Your Own Fire / Losers And Winners / Walking On The Water / Ridin' Along / Dusty Road / Love In A Yielded Heart / Skeptic's Song / Happily Married Man / Ain't Gonna Fight It

Probably my least favourite DA album, although I like it more today, than I did when I first got it on vinyl years ago. My first exposure to DA was their infamous Horrendous Disc, and Alarma. As you’d expect the country / swing elements to their debut effort didn’t go over that well with the rock and roller in me. Although I thought "Skeptic’s Song" was pretty funny.

So here it is years later, and this one actually holds up pretty well. It’s not as country as the cover would have you believe. It had soft rock and dare I say it jazz elements to it. There are hints to what was around the corner musically. It would be another album before Jerry’s guitar would be in its full glory, and Terry’s muse wasn’t in full swing yet. Heck the boys didn’t even have a drummer.

It’s hard to imagine this is the album that introduced the world to the band that won’t go away. This is a pretty rare find on CD nowadays, and if you can find it snag it up. It’s an interesting piece of history.

Reviewed June 4, 2002

Shotgun Angel (©1977 / Maranatha)

The Songs: Days And Nights / Black Gold Fever / Praise Song / Father's Arms / Meal / Shotgun Angel / Bereshith Overture / Lady Goodbye / The Whistler / He's Gonna Do A Number On You / Better / Sail Me Away / Posse In The Sky

This is an album to go ooh and ah over (all together now: oooooh, aaaaah). The guys were still kids (they don’t seem to age) when this was released, and it was a surprisingly mature effort. The boys were straying over into more rock territory, with Eagles’ brand country for fun ("Shotgun Angel" is more Eagles than the Eagles were).

What really makes this album stand out is the second half (or in the old days, the second side) of the disc. The latter songs make up a mini book of Revelation. The cross fading, and thematic content formed one long song. It was something few artists had attempted, and for a “Christian” album at the time, they were given a pretty good budget to play with. Shotgun Angel was a pivotal album, and would serve as a bridge to their transformation into the misunderstood and commercially nearly viable band they are to this day.

Reviewed June 5, 2002

Shotgun Angel 25th Anniversary Issue (©1977 / 2001 Maranatha / Stunt)

Bonus tracks: Jonah & The Whale / Takes A Heartache / Farther Along
Disc two: Rock and Religion Radio Show

The 25th Anniversary edition of Shotgun Angel should have been a crowning moment for DA fans who missed out on the limited run the first time Shotgun Angel was released on CD – instead it turned out to be a major disappointment, and a fubar of the highest order on distributor M8’s part. It was so badly done that M8 and Daniel Amos parted company. The problem was the mastering of the CD and the sequencing. There are pauses or spaces between all of the tracks. They’re not noticeable on the first several tracks; however, from the "Finale: Bereshith Overture" to the end where the songs cross fade and mesh together the little blip of silence kills the effect. Some people have complained about the extra treble saying the album was “messed” with, but I haven’t really found it to be overly tinny compared to the original.

The bonus tracks are marginal in quality, but they’re nice to have as time pieces. Same can be said of the Rock and Religion Radio Show bonus disc. It’s content rather than the quality that counts. It’s great fun to hear how young and full of zeal the guys were back then. They may have mellowed with age, but they haven’t lost their conviction. Apparently there are plans at some point to correct the disc, and when that happens this will be an item to own. Overall I wouldn’t recommend this one yet, unless you really want to hear the Radio Show disc.

Reviewed June 5, 2002

Shotgun Angel Maranatha Radio Show (©2001 M8 #166)

the tracks: Interviews with Jonathan Brown regarding the recording process / Don't Light Your Own Fire (live) / Shotgun Angel (live) / Jonah & the Whale (live) / Takes A Heartache (live) / Farther Along (live)

I was obviously in one of my must buy anything DA moods when I picked this up. The quality is marginal, the bonus tracks are mostly ones from the 25th Anniversary CD, and are even poorer in quality. The tray insert is an inkjet copy with a scanned autograph.

Tacky, but life's like that sometimes. On the plus side it was fun to hear Jonathan David Brown (the producer) talk about DA in the studio. The interviews about the recording process are pretty elementary, but if you have no idea how albums are recorded this is fun, and it's great to hear someone else talk passionately about Shotgun Angel.

Reviewed June 5, 2002

Horrendous Disc (©1980 Solid Rock)

the songs: I Love You #19 / Hound of Heaven / Near Sighted Girl With Approaching Tidal Wave / Sky King (Out Across the Sky) / On The Line / Man In The Moon / Never Leave You / Horrendous Disc / Hound of Heaven (two tribute versions by Larry Norman)

In 1980 Solid Rock records finally released Horrendous Disc. This was the album that blew the cowboy hats off the boys for good (or bad if you think that everything after Shotgun Angel is crap).

From the opening riff on "I Love You #19" Daniel Amos put the Christian Music world on its ear. What the heck was this? Well produced, well played, and well written rock and roll? This is pretty common now, but twenty years ago the majority of Christian music was terrible. Evangelists were still convinced that rock and roll was the tool of the Devil, and that dancing was a short cut to hell.

Horrendous Disc had two terrible things against it: First was the fact this was a great rock and roll album, and second was that the dang thing made you want to dance. Bummer. Ssssizzle.

It took a long, long, long time for this to finally be reissued on CD, and I'm pretty happy to have it as part of my collection. Of course there's always a catch - there's going to be another version released that will contain bonus tracks and other goodies.

Reviewed July 30, 2000

Alarma! (©1981 Stunt)

Tracks: Central Theme / Alarma! / Big Time Big Deal / Props / My Room / Faces To The Window / Cloak & Dagger / Colored By / C&D Reprise / Through The Speakers / Hit Them / Baby Game / Shedding The Mortal Coil / Endless Summer / Walls Of Doubt / Ghost Of The Heart / (bonus tracks) No Spaceship / Out Of Town / My Room (demo version)

How does one start to differentiate the five star reviews? Horrendous Disc and Alarma! hit DA fans within months of each other. It's hard to say which eclipsed the other. HD took on it's own life, but it's really Alarma! that set the tone and feel for the band for years to come. As I listened to this cranked on the headphones today I was propelled back 20 years, and realized that this one still sounds fresh, fresher than HD (gasp! heathen blasphemer!).

Jerry Chamberlain (one of my guitar heroes) had chops Rick Nielsen (one of my other guitar heroes) would envy. The music was in your face, it was daring, challenging, and brilliant. I remember sitting on the floor of my bedroom with the first part of the Chronicles spread out, and the cover nearby trying to make sense of what Terry was saying. I almost got it, but not being the world's preeminent thinker went back to being blown away by the music. "Endless Summer" remains to this day one of the greatest tunes I've ever heard.

After this album the boys embarked on a creative journey through the musical world of Oz and have never looked back. Those who jumped on the band wagon early have had a wondrous ride. Of course many of the old fans wondered what happened to those nice country boys who sang them "nice" songs about Jesus.

Reviewed June 6, 2002

Doppelganger (©1983, 1992 Stunt)

Tracks: Hollow Man / Mall (All Over The World) / Real Girls / New Car! / Do Big Boys Cry / Youth With A Machine / The Double / Distance And Direction / Memory Lane / Angels Tuck You In / Little Crosses / Autographs For The Sick / I Didn't Build It For Me / Here I Am / Hollow Man (Reprise) / Concert Intro / Real Girls (Live)/ Memory Lane (Live) Sigh.

The second in the Alarma Chronicles. Where Alarma! was sonically bright and brilliant, Doppleganger was thicker, meatier and even farther down the weirdness road (or up, depending on your perspective). This album also introduced the world to Tim Chandler’s bass. The boys got to play with some weird keyboard noises this time, and were obviously having a lot of fun.

Back in the early 80’s when this first came out I played it constantly. When the CD reissue came out I was totally blown away, I was hearing little nuances I'd never heard before. The layout is very cool. The packaging on the CD is still among my favourite. Of course what’s missing is any sort of commentary, and the text to the Chronicles. Same can be said of the Alarma! reissue as well. This was more than made up when the Book Set came out.

Doppelganger still stands out as a pillar to creativity and Terry’s barbed commentary balanced with Jerry’s inspiring guitar work - even if it is a little dated.

Reviewed June 7, 2002

Vox Humana (©1984, 1992 Heartbeat Music / Refuge)

1: Travelog 2: (It's The Eighties, So Where's Our) Rocket Packs 3: Home Permanent 4: It's Sick 5: William Blake 6: Dance Stop 7: Live And Let Live 8: When Worlds Collide 9: As The World Turns 10: She's All Heart 11: The Incredible Shrinking Man 12: Sanctuary

I've been listening to this one for a couple of weeks now, trying to pin it down and get my thoughts straight. I've come to the conclusion that the summer months and my ability to think aren't compatible.

This is probably one of the most dated and cheesy efforts the band ever put out, and in some ways it has aged about as gracefully as Joan Rivers. Remember this was 1984, and drummers all over the land were dumping their kits and buying up Simmons pads. Having said that, this is one of my personal favourites ("Okay then genius, why only 4 stars?").

Vox Humana was a transitional album, it was fun, serious, and quirky as I am tall - it continued the Alarma Chronicles and was hinting at what lay behind door number four when Fearful Symmetry came out. With the departure of Jerry Chamberlain the band tapped into Tim Chandler's impressive talents and got him to strap on his six string and take a tour of duty on lead. He does an pretty good job considering the shoes he was filling. I wonder if the guy can sing?

The 80's were a time of optimism and wondering what the future held just around the corner. Some of my favourite DA songs appear here: "Rocket Packs", "Sanctuary", and the unbelievably catchy "Dance Stop". A song that recently has started to wear out it's welcome. My two youngest kids think this is the greatest song in Daddy's collection, and while we cleaned up the toys in the basement last Saturday (a two hour job) only one song was played. Over and over and over and over and over and over.

I guess rock and rolling really is better than bowling.

The Refuge reissue has some sequencing issues, but I guess this only lends to it's charm (hey, I'm a positive thinker).

Reviewed August 17, 2003

Darn Floor - Big Bite (©1987 Frontline)

Tracks: Return Of the Beat Menace / Strange Animals / Darn Floor - Big Bite / Earth Household / Safety Net / Pictures Of The Gone World / Divine Instant / Half Light, Epoch, And Phase / The Unattainable Earth / The Shape Of Air

Probably one of the more ignored watershed moments for the band. Elaborately produced, and chock full of some of their best songs ever. You want a list? Take your pick from the 10 tracks. The songs are a great mix of the absurd to the straight and narrow pop tune. As much as I go on about Jerry's guitar playing, there's no way he could have pulled off this one. I love his playing, but DFBB is built on the interplay between Greg Flesch and Tim Chandler. This is the one that truly made Greg not just the replacement guitar player in my mind (wait, I felt that way about Fearful Symmetry too).

So what happened with all this brilliance? Gold and Platinum accolades? Nope - can you say Stiffed? Yup, this one fell flatter than Carman singing the National Anthem (I had to find a way to throw in at least one Carman reference on this page). This of course is one of the great travesties of this or any other century (holy crap, am I ever waxing maudlin today. Hopefully I'll proof read this and edit out all this nonsense).

I bought it new in 1987 and I played this pretty much nonstop for about three years. It's that good.

Reviewed December 30, 2002

Motor Cycle (©1993 Brainstorm)

Banquet At The World's End / Traps, Ensnares / Hole In The World / (What's Come) Over Me / Buffalo Hills / Guilty / Motorcycle / Wonderful / So Long / My Frontier / Grace Is The Smell Of Rain / Noelle / Wise Acres / So Long Again

Hailed by many (I know of at least three people, which is actually a “few” but many just sounds better) as the second coming of DA. Motor Cycle put on hold much of the deliberate weirdness of some of their previous efforts and crafted an accessible (mostly) somewhat Beatlesque (of the Lennon persuasion) collection of songs. It also marked the return of Jerry Chamberlain and the performances are as solid as they get. The boys know how to play, and that Terry feller can sure pen a tune.

Here’s where I get off the bus (it would have been too easy to say motor cycle so I picked another vehicle. The wheels still go round and round).

Motor Cycle is a better than good, but it's not an excellent album. It has some wonderful songs, and a flash brilliance in "Hole in the World". But call me Chip and dip me in cheese, but I have never really gone all gushy over this one. Oh I try. I’ve had it for a decade (where does the time fly?), and it’s been played more than once (many many times), it’s just that despite a better than average hit to miss ratio, great production and wicked playing by the guys I'm not overwhelmed by the total effect.

If you’re a big fan don’t start on me with your “What about this song or that song” shtick, I’m not skewering the band, I said it was better than good didn’t I?

Reviewed April 2003

Motor Cycle Tracks (©1993 Brainstorm)

Banquet At The World's End / Hole In The World / (What's Come) Over / Me Grace Is The Smell Of Rain / Intro - Reunion Of The Band / Chemistry Of The Band - Guitars, Etc / Album Concept - Celebration Of Life And Death / Buffalo Hills & Noelle / Keyboards, Etc - Traps, Ensnares / Courage & "Ministry" / Life On The Road In The "Old Days" / What The Future Holds / Buffalo Hills (Acoustic Mix) / Hole In The World (Instrumental) / (What's Come) Over Me (Acoustic Demo) / Building A "MotorCycle" / Terry - "Banquet At The World's End" / Terry - "Grace" / Terry & Jerry - New Album "MotorCycle" / Terry - General (Any Single)

Now you're probably wondering what medication I'm on. Yes, this is a collection of bits and pieces from Motor Cycle. An album I will admit I was a little harsh on, but I still stand by my opinion. What I like about this is that it features a few of the best songs from the CD as well as some insightful interviews with Jerry and Terry which I liked.

Of course what's so fun about this whole thing is that it's as rare as a zit on Tim Chandler's butt (no I don't go around with a mental image of Tim's arse in my mind's eye). I'm hoping it's rare, in the end that's really between Tim and his doctor.

Reviewed April 2003

Songs of the Heart (©1995 Brainstorm)

1: Can't Take My Eyes Off of You 2: The Glory Road 3: Get on the Bus, Aloha 4: Evangeline 5: Uneasy Lies the Head of the Confidence Man 6: The Organ Bar 7: Donna Nietche and her Super Race of Kick Boxing Uber Parrots 8: Our Night to Howl, Time to Go Dancing 9: Sins of the Fathers 10: Turn This Off 11: Loveland 12: When Everyone Wore Hats 13: My Hand to God

Songs of the Heart is probably one of the most misuberstood albums in the Daniel Amos catalog. For me this was one of those exercises in typical DA weirdness musically merging Motor Cycle and Darn Floor Big Bite. When I first got it in '95 I played it a bunch of times, but it never quite got under my skin.

This isn't to say that there aren't some brilliant moments scattered throughout the disc. "When Everyone Wore Hats" is without a doubt one of the finest songs I've ever heard - period. It still gives me chills. In fact there are loads of killer songs here, but for whatever reason the whole is less than the sum of its parts.

Still, there's something about this album that consistently draws me back to it, and although there are albums I like more, I probably play this one more than any other DA album in my collection.

Not content to let this one fade away the boys would take it apart and re-issue the album as a deluxe 3 CD set. But that's a story for another time.

Reviewed February 28, 2006

The Alarma Chronicles (©2000 M8 Distribution #431)

disc one: Introduction to the Alarma Chronicles Volume I / Central Theme / Alarma / Big Time - Big Deal / Props / My Room / Faces to the Window / Cloak and Dagger / Colored By / C & D Reprise / Through the Speakers / Hit Them / Baby Game / Shedding the Mortal Coil / Endless Summer / Walls of Doubt / Ghost of the Heart

disc two: Doppelganger Introduction / Hollow Man / Mall (All Over the World) / Real Girls / New Car! / Do Big Boys Cry / Youth With a Machine / The Double / Distance and Direction / Memory Lane / Angels Tuck You In / Little Crosses / Autographs for the Sick / I Didn't Build It For Me / Here I Am / Hollow Man (reprise) / Vox Humana Introduction / Travelog / (It's the Eighties, So Where's Our) Rocket Packs / Home Permanent / It's Sick / William Blake / Dance Stop

disc three: Live and Let Live / When Worlds Collide / As the World Turns / She's All Heart / The Incredible Shrinking Man / Santuary / Fear Symmetry Introduction / A Sigh for You / The Pool / Sleep Silent Child / Neverland Ballroom / Strong Points, Weak Points / Instruction Thru Film / When Moonlight Sleeps (on the frosted ground) / Sudden Heaven / Shadow Catcher / Beautiful One

Once Upon a time there was a little country and western band that evolved, into something twisted, dark, funny, and inspired. When the first volume of the Alarma Chronicles was released on the heels of their ground breaking Horrendous Disc, Daniel Amos fans didn't know what hit them. What the heck happened to those nice boys that sounded a little like the Eagles and wrote those "nice" songs? More to the point what happened to those cool cowboy hats?

With the release of this three CD "book set" the entire Alarma Chronicles are collected together. The packaging is outstanding, and the music is amazing. From very aggressive and raw to polished Daniel Amos covers more musical ground than many people have been able to accept. To those who have stayed the course and been along for the ride each new album has been eagerly awaited to see where the boys are going this time around.

If you've never heard of Daniel Amos, and want to know what all the fuss is about I'd encourage you to try and snag a copy of this collection while you can, there were only 2000 copies being made. It is exceptional. Period. After that it'll be pay through the nose on ebay.

Reviewed August 2000

Mr. Buechner's Dream (©2001 Galaxy21 #70 pre-release)

disc one: This Is The One / Mr. Beuchner's Dream / The Author of the Story / Your Long Year / Who's Who Here / Thick Skin / Ribbons and Bows / Ordinary Extraordinary Day / I get To Wondering / Faithful Street / The Lucky Ones / Rice Paper Wings / The Tale You Told / Meanwhile / My Beautiful Martyr / The Staggering Gods / A Little Grace / Over Her Shoulder / Mr. Buechner Wakes Up / Joel

disc two: Pretty Little Lies / Child on a Leash / Small Great Things / Easy for You / Maybe All I Need / Pregnant Pause / She's a Hard Drink / So Far So Good / Flash In Your Eyes / Nobody Will / Fingertips / Steal Away / And So It Goes

It's been a few years since Daniel Amos has put out an album. The last few years have been very productive for Terry Taylor - DA's singer and songwriter. From his solo work, to the Lost Dogs, the guy has been a one man writing machine. I'll admit to being a little bit unsure of what to expect. A year before it's release I bought a prerelease and was among the few hundred people that help finance this album. So I waited and waited and waited.

When it finally arrived, I eagerly put it on, and was totally underwhelmed by the first song. But as the songs went by, I found myself tapping my foot, nodding my head at the words, and being thoroughly blow away. As I listened again, even their poor choice of a lead off track, started to get under my skin. This is an album only DA could put out. Two discs worth of tunes, and each clocking in at almost 60 minutes - and not a dud among the lot. The lineup this time features Tim Chandler on bass, Greg Flesch on guitar, and Ed McTaggart on drums. Sadly missed by me is Jerry's playing. Don't get me wrong, Greg is a great player, but there's something about Jerry's playing that defines DA for me.

The music is a treat too. The boys take us on a ride through a ride that touches on the classic sound, to a rougher DA sound that straddles Motor Cycle and Darn Floor Big Bite. In short it's a healthy helping of beautiful weirdness through out.

The only downside to all of this wonderfulness is that this will not reach the audience it should. Last I heard there were problems with distributors and such nonsense. So if you've heard of the band, and thought they were gone - THEY'RE BACK! Go to DanielAmos.com and order a copy.

Reviewed September 2001

When Everyone Wore Hats: Songs of the Heart (©2002 Stunt)

(disc 1) 1: Can't Take My Eyes Off of You 2: The Glory Road 3: Get on the Bus, Aloha 4: Evangeline 5: Uneasy Lies the Head of the Confidence Man 6: The Organ Bar 7: Donna Nietche and her Super Race of Kick Boxing Uber Parrots 8: Our Night to Howl, Time to Go Dancing 9: Sins of the Fathers 10: Turn This Off 11: Loveland 12: When Everyone Wore Hats 13: My Hand to God

(Disc 2) 1: Donna Nietche And Her Super Race Of Kickboxing Über Parrots 2: Piano Intro 3: The Glory Road 4: Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You / Get Back Into The Bus, Aloha 5: Evangeline 6: Uneasy Lies The Head Of The Confidence Man 7: The Organ Bar 8: Our Night To Howl, Time To Go Dancing / Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You (Reprise) 9: Sins Of The Fathers 10: Loveland 11: When Everyone Wore Hats 12: My Hand To God / Piano Outro 13: The Glory Road (Reprise)

(Disc 3) 1: Part One 2: Your Hidden Hand 3: Part Two 4: Turn This Off 5: Part Three 6: The Devil's Elbow 7: Interview

With the relative success of the bookset (remind me to roll my eyes when a mere 2,000 copies is considered a success - what a sad state of affairs), the band decided to revisit Songs of the Heart. Which to me was an odd choice for a reissue, considering how readily avaible the album is if you know where to look. But it was the will of the band. The resulting three disc set was issued in a softbook, with an accompanying story, detailed liner notes and lyrics. The packaging was really well done. The CD sleeves were ackward, but I store the CDs in their own cases so it's not a big deal.

Songs of the Heart was originally released in '95, and is as misunderstood an album as the boys ever released. The band seemed to delight in throwing out artistic curve balls. A delight to those few who "got" the band, and a marketers nightmare if you're trying to move product.

The reworked songs are quite a treat, and to be honest a bit of a surprise. The smokey atmosphere and sparse arrangements give them a subtle twist. One can almost imagine the guys performing in an old roadhouse behind the chicken wire. A few years ago an album like this would have been blown off as one of those ubiquitious MTV Unplugged albums.

The third disc features spoken word snippets from the accompanying short story, as well as a couple of beautiful songs, "Your Hidden Hand" and "The Devil's Elbow" which sound like Lost Dogs demos. The disc closes with an interview where Terry talks about the original release. You get the sense that he feels a little bit like a magician being forced to show how he did his tricks, or a comedian having to explain a joke. Songs of the Heart had a lot going on, and most people just didn't get it, myself included. The bookset was another kick at the can, and although it will never rank as my favourite Daniel Amos effort, it finally gets some well deserved attention.

Reviewed February 28, 2006

The Making of Mr. Buechner's Dream (©2005 Stunt)

This DVD schlockumentary takes the viewer on an unprecedented all access pass behind the scenes while the band rehearsed, goofed around, and wrote Mr. Buechner's Dream. The footage is intimate, and features a lot of personal home movies provided by members of the band. Which is part of the charm, but like with most home movies, the awkward cuts are somewhat irritating after a while. It would have been nice to have more complete songs represented, but hey - this is Daniel Amos after all, and they never do anything by the book.

The DVD has two chapters. The first is the home movies of the rehearsals at Ed's house, where the guys are loafing around fleshing (oh, man I should have used my Greg Flesch pun, crap, well it's too late now) out ideas. The second is the studio work at the Green Room. We get to watch the little pieces come together and witness how they layered the textures that made up Buechner's Dream. There are a number interviews with various band members, and some pretty funny bits where the guy's ride on Ed. Man that Ed, if he ever got locked in a tower he could provide his rescuer a way in. The whole thing runs about an hour and fifteen minutes - which more or less makes this a feature length thingamajiger. The bonus features include a live segment where the boys less Tim all look purdy in suits - the mix isn't great, but it was taken from the board so it's like being there. Finally available is the track "Nowhere is Someplace" one of the best songs to never grace a Daniel Amos album.

The DVD itself, has a few little foibles, such as an occasionally out of synch dub, which is funny at times, especially on the Tim Chandler bits, it actually works in an odd sort of way. The sound quality is okay, considering a lot of the footage is homemade, and there is the usual hiss.

Now I have to mention this is not a DVD for the uninitiated. I played it for some friends who didn't know DA from Carman, and they lasted about six minutes before asking me if there was anything on the shopping channel, preferably with Tony Little.

However, for those of us who like the band, and have more than a passing fancy for the old farts, this is pretty interesting stuff, and deserves to be in your collection. True, it's not something you'll play everyday, but it is a great companion piece to the album, and in fact my opinion of the album is greater now for having watched this than it was before. Whoever said familiarity breeds contempt was full of crap.

Reviewed January 7, 2006

When Worlds Collide (©2000 Ferris Wheel)

Tracks: I Love You #19 (Rick Altizer) / William Blake (Erin Echo) / Shotgun Angel (77s) / Alarma! (Phil Madeira) / Stone Away (Robert Heirendt) / Shedding The Mortal Coil (Starflyer 59) / Hell Oh (Jeff Elbel And Ping) / Stange Animals (Street Angel) / Beautiful One (Randy Stonehill) / The Pool (JAP) / Hold Back The Wind, Donna (Sideways8) / Blowing Smoke (Jimmy A) / Through The Speakers (DAS) / Real Girls (Joy Gewalt) / Incredible Shrinking Man (Truck) / The Hound Of Heaven (Larry Norman) / It's The 80's (Poole) / (Out Of) The Wild Wood (The Throes)

This isn't as good as I would have hoped or expected. I listen to Rick's great version of I Love You several times a week (this CD is on the bottom shelf, which my three year old can reach, and the cover is his favourite. Of course to a three year old, a CD only hold one song - which is of course the I Love You song. For fun I played the original for him, which he recognized, but wanted his version). I bought some of the Dead Artist Syndrom stuff because of the DAS version of Through the Speakers. I don't know what happened with the 77s version of Shotgun Angel, I forgot it was on CD at first and checked to see if I was playing it at the right speed (anyone else remember the 16 setting on their turntables?).

I was expecting more recognizable talent, and not a bunch of obscure indie artists I'd never heard of. Sure there were some of the bigger little names I'd heard of: The Throes, Stonehill, 77s, Norman (and his hideous contribution - sorry Larry), and Phil Madeira, but the rest had no impact. There was some behind the scenes tongue in cheek fun involving David Edwards and his inappropriate contribution which never made the cut.

I know I'm being a critical pain in the donkey, but I'm not totally slagging it. I expected better and only got good. Still, it's not a bad album, it really does have a number of very good moments.

Apparently there's a sequal in the works. If Eric and Jason are keeping with the Wylie and Balmer theme they'll call it After Worlds Collide. Most likely they'll just call is When Worlds Collide II.

Reviewed January 2, 2003

dämb it by The Daniel Amos Message Board (©2002 A Big Dork Production)

dämb it: Strange Days (Dw Dunphy) / God Went Bowling (carl) / Happily Married Man (Rev. J.T. Tucker III & Aunt Betty) / In The Calling (Dolphin & Buffalo) / Red White And Blue (wes berlin) / I Love You #19 (The Banos) / The Unsuccessful Italian Missionary (jamespop) / The Big Guns (JiMinY) / Fortunate Sons (Jonny Edwards & Wife) / Darn Floor - Big Bite (wes berlin) / Bibleland Suite (™) / The Wall Of Heaven (Woggy & JiMiNY) / Angels Tuck You In (Theo) / Steal Away (brdhsnyrsoul) / All That Remains (Melody & Jim Butler) / Home Permanent (arcticsunburn) / She's A Hard Drink (Dr. Sticky) / Babble On (Shemp) / BaBaLand (™)

more dämb it: Carman (Bowling Pin) / The Unattainable Earth (wes berlin) / She's All Heart (Jerry Chapman) / A Certain Love (Dw. Dunphy) / Travelog (Contemptible Dreamers) / New Car (Woggy & JiMiNY) / Tico The Talking Trumpet (jamespop) / If You Loved Here, You'd Be Home By Now (Jim Muglia) / Sprinklerhead! (Bubba Death Machine) / Hey John Wayne (Casual Cruelty) / Outdoor Elvis (Fluid Imbibers) / (The First) Noel[le] (D.M.L) / Darn Floor - Big Bite (Dr. Rich & Uncle Ralph) / The Shape Of Air (jamespop) / (What's Come) Over Me (Shemp) / Faces To The Window (Buffalo & Egret) / Wacky Fan Letter (Mark)

Tribute discs can be an iffy thing (I didn't totally pan the official tribute, I just had high hopes). Fan tribute discs are more than iffy, they can be down right scary and disturbing (I'm only guessing since this is the only fan disc in my collection). This one takes a giant step beyond scary and lands into territory normally reserved for the criminally insane.

Daniel Amos has attracted a following of strange and disturbingly talented artists (you name it, writers, artists, musicians and health professionals) who follow the band's output the way astronomers watch the evening sky for new happenings in the heavens. The band also has a stupefying message board. At times this board is a place of thought provoking discussions, but most often it resembles a not quite done Mexican taco.

The packaging for an indie fan release is better than many commercial CDs I've seen. The art work and notes are first class - really. This was obviously a labour of love, and it looks great.

So how is this dämb it thing anyway? Well, it is wildly inconsistent - at times it's beautifully poignant; other times it's painful. But mostly it's pretty dämb good. Surprisingly so. Many of the arrangements are clever thoughtful interpretations of the originals, and the performances are better than average. Even the sonically challenged submissions have an honesty and heart that does the originals justice.

Of course I'm somewhat biased considering I have some skin in the game on this thing - however I'm not a big fan of my own submission (no I'm not fishing, it's pretty good, but I should have been more careful recording to avoid the vocal distortion) so I'm not just being charitable to the other artists. And to be honest I'm pretty impressed. For a fan disc, this really is a pretty amazing accomplishment. Not every band gets such an honour.

For a very detailed look into the making of dämb it visit BigDork.org

It'll be interesting to find out what the band thought of this thing. In some ways it's a fitting payback to the band for their involvement in the Sacred Cows CD.

Although this was done as a tribute not as a skewer.

Reviewed January 2, 2003

More Negative Fruit (©2003 A Big Dork Production)

Yet another fan tribute to Daniel Amos, subtitled Songs of Worship and Devotion. This collection was produced by the same team who brought about dämbit. As you would expect the album cover, notes and packaging are first rate. Was the world ready for another tribute so close on the heels of the last one? Maybe not, but here it is regardless.

Like its predecessor the submissions run the gambit from tasty to challenged, which is cool all by itself, since no submission was refused. However the number of stellar tracks here is disproportionate to the ones in need of a little sonic TLC. Which is no mean feat considering that this collection spans two discs cleverly titled Plumb and Lime, with songs pulled from all over the Terry Taylor universe. The majority of the interpretations are an angular take on the original, rather than a note for note regurgitation. If I wanted to listen to note for note covers I’d put on a Celine Dion album, or an American Idol cast soundtrack (not bloody likely).

I’m not going to pick out my favourites, but I will give an honourable mention to Melody Butler for her stunning version of Be My Hiding Place. There really are a lot of really good songs here, and I was more impressed than I thought I would be by a tribute album put out by a bunch of amateurs.

If you got the first one, you should really belly up and get this one too. Not to take away from the first one, but this one is even better. Or should I say, even more of a good thing. So come on, it's not too late to pick up a copy, the price is right and partial proceeds are given to Terry. Take a chance on something a little different.

Reviewed March 22, 2004