New Albums: Van Morrison, William Bell, Red Hot Chili Peppers

It's Too Late to Stop Now . . . Volumes II, III, IV & DVD

(Legacy ***1/2)

nolead ends Like snowflakes, or the free-wheelin' jazz horn players he vocally emulates, no two Van Morrison concert performances are exactly alike. Reason this newly unearthed, four-disc collection of 1973 shows at the Troubadour in L.A., the Santa Monica Civic Center, and London's Rainbow Theatre - all with the roaring lion bouncing off the walloping 11-piece, horn- and string-rich Caledonia Soul Orchestra - are such a joy. Even multiple renderings of "Brown Eyed Girl," "Caravan," "Domino," and "Cypress Avenue" don't wear out their welcome. And equally fun are one-offs of Buddy Johnson's "Since I Fell For You," Ray Charles' "I Believe to My Soul," Hank Williams' "Hey Good Lookin'," and the Louis Prima hit "Buona Sera," offering a road map to the Celtic soulster's roots.

Credit the artist's personal catalog takeover and transfer for finally getting these gems out. And thank a top-notch Legacy engineering team for fine-tuning though never sweetening the tapes. The job's done so well you can differentiate performance spaces and track the band congealing in tightness and sass as the tour evolves. Try zeroing in first on drummer Daoud "David" Shaw, a longtime Philly guy.

I do wish there'd been some color correcting of the bathed-in-red video set, so typical of '70s concert shoots. Does put a glow on the "Moondance" man's pasty complexion, though!

- Jonathan Takiff

nolead begins William Bell
nolead ends nolead begins This Is Where I Live
nolead ends nolead begins (Stax ***1/2)

nolead ends On the verge of his 77th birthday and the 10th anniversary of the rejuvenated Stax label, Memphis' William Bell is heading home. "This is where I live / This is where I give / All my love, all my time / all my money, every dime," he sings in a cool, yet passionate howl on the title track of his new album. This is a record whose deep soul resonates with every funky element of his past - the molasses-thick Tennessee R&B and the raw, silken blues classics he's penned such as "You Don't Miss Your Water" and "Born Under a Bad Sign."

Bell's tenor voice was always on the sweet side of the rough Stax continuum (as opposed to the gruff Otis Redding), and his craft as a writer leaned on the hard art of the tortured romantic ballad. He uses that lovely, simmering tone best on his acknowledgment of failures and prayer for forgiveness, "The Three of Me," backed simply by a gritty horn chart and a humming Hammond organ. For a humble romancer, Bell is also a pragmatist as he calls out a potentially shipwrecked marriage with the line, "There's more rooms in a house . . . than the bedroom" on "More Rooms." It's when he revisits "Born Under a Bad Sign" - a treasure cowritten by Booker T. Jones for guitarist Albert King - that Bell shines, reconfiguring it into his own weary lament. Welcome back.

- A.D. Amorosi

nolead begins Red Hot Chili Peppers
nolead ends nolead begins The Getaway
nolead ends nolead begins (Warner Bros. ***)

nolead ends The Red Hot Chili Peppers are long past being the Los Angelino rude boys renowned for wearing gym socks on their genitals and making jolting, head-thrusting punk-funk. Singer Anthony Kiedis, drummer Chad Smith, and bassist Flea are in their 50s. They're certainly still spry enough to do the "freaky styley" if they so desire (new guitarist in a series of many, Josh Klinghoffer, is just 38), yet after 10 soundalike studio albums, a radical change was in order for No. 11. Hence, The Getaway, a refreshingly spacious, often experimental work produced by Brian "Danger Mouse" Burton.

RHCP takes to the Mouse's atmospheres and rhythmic twists with ease. As with the chart-breaking ballad "Under the Bridge," Kiedis' crooning and Flea's fluid bass line make "Dark Necessities" a smooth-yet-salty adult cut. Though his idea of romance on "Goodbye Angels" and "The Longest Wave" is creepy (lyrics like "Under my skin and half my age"), Kiedis sings with calm, Beatles-ish lilts. Not that RHCP doesn't let its stammering, freak flag fly. "Go Robot" is a rhythmic workout driven by Danger Mouse's frizzled synths. "Dreams of a Samurai" is Flea at his jam-band best, and the wonky title track rocks crisp and hard. The Red Hot Chili Peppers have finally grown from boys to men. Good.

- A.D. Amorosi