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June 23, 2004

Royal Crown Revue - Greetings from Hollywood (Royal Crown Records)

By Lauren Isaacson

Greetings.gif Ten years is a long time for a band. Ten years is enough time for a reunion let alone an anniversary, and in that time slick haired musicians have exited stage left, tattoos of then girlfriends were regretted, new musicians have entered stage right, and skills have been honed.
Usually one has to have an entire catalog of a band's music in order to really hear the progression and maturity that only miles of touring and hours of shows can produce, but the gentlemen of Royal Crown Revue have given their fans a gift of sorts - an entire album of snapshots in the form of song showing their growth from beginning, to middle, to present.
The first five songs digitally remastered from a tape that they released in 1994 featuring an early (and surprisingly different) version of "The Contender." The next two songs were recorded in 1998 on separate occasions. "Come Fly With Me" with a seventeen piece big band and "Hey Santa" recorded for a local radio station's Christmas Album (I'm still waiting for a swinging version of "Dreidel Dreidel"). The last eight were recorded in 2003/2004 with the present set of members and features the jazz standards that have become favorites for those who often see their shows. "Sunny Side of the Street," "Too Young," "Come Back to Sorrento," and my personal favorite, a sassy version of the late great Ray Charles song, "Sick and Tired."
Not only do you now not have to sneak your digital recorder into the Royal Crown's next show, but also they have supplied us with a plethora of bonus features rivaling any special edition DVD. Previously unreleased photos, the video for "Watts Local," a short biography of the band, and a few other tids and bits.
Now I will leave you to ask the burning question of the hour - Hey! When's the new stuff coming out?!

Posted by xx - Ms. Lauren - xx at June 23, 2004 9:31 PM