Dennis Brennan, Mike Keneally, Celia, Radio Beat
By Seth Rogovoy

(GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass., May 24, 2001) -
Dennis Brennan: Boston-bred roots-rock

On "Rule No. 1" (Esca), Boston rock singer-songwriter Dennis Brennan www.escarecords.com combines the lyrical felicity and songcraft of Ray Davies, the white-soul aggression of Graham Parker, the heartland roots-rock of Tom Petty and the barroom rock of early-'70s Rolling Stones. Brennan, who performs at Club Helsinki in Great Barrington on Thursday, May 24, has been a mainstay of the Boston rock scene for years, playing r&b with the Martells and pop-rock with Push Push, before launching his solo career in 1995.

"Rule No. 1," his third album, is a showcase for Brennan's varied roots-rock approach, ranging from the honky-tonk blues of "Where Did We Go Wrong" to the haunting, R.E.M.-like folk-rocker "Dream in Six." On "Rule No. 1," Brennan is joined by a lineup of Boston rock royalty, including vocalists Merrie Amsterberg and Barrence Whitfield, Mary Chapin Carpenter's guitarist Duke Levine, Paula Cole's drummer Jay Bellerose and Aimee Mann's drummer John Sands, Patty Larkin's bassist Richard Gates and the band Gravel Pit.

Also at Club Helsinki (528-3394) this weekend, retro swing/lounge group Munjoy Hill Society on Friday night, and jazz saxophonist Hamiet Bluiett on Saturday night.

Mike Kenneally: Zappafied eclecticism

"Live in Japan," the dizzying lead track on "Dancing" (Exowax), the new album from Mike Keneally and Beer for Dolphins www.keneally.com, starts out like vintage Todd Rundgren-ish pop-soul, throws in a bit of rock riffage out of the Who, hints at '80s power-rock, morphs into a quick rap, and returns to the catchy pop chorus before interpolating a passage of cartoon music at the end, undoutedly a nod to Keneally's stint playing guitar for the late Frank Zappa. The Zappa connection is probably the most telling: like Zappa, Keneally - who performs with his versatile band, Beer for Dolphins, at the Iron Horse in Northampton on Saturday, May 26, is a talented, eclectic eccentric, whose lyrics ("I'm stuck in a backwards song," "I come from a land where an artificial man may well be president") are as equally cryptic as his music.

Celia: Dirge days

While some of the more obvious reference points for the music of the Pioneer Valley-based singer-songwriter Celia are fellow piano-playing women who sing about female blues, people like Tori Amos and Joni Mitchell, some of the more haunting piano ballads and stirring emotional portraits on "While I Lay Watching," her debut album, recall Bob Dylan's lesser-known piano-based music from "John Wesley Harding," "New Morning" and "Planet Waves." Celia's biography includes early years in South London before her minister father pulled up stakes and moved the family to the Ozarks, which Celia touches on in "Man at the Pulpit." Celia touches on other stark, raw events on the album's nine songs, most of which she'll be performing on Friday night, May 25, at Dream Away Lodge in Becket. Also at Dream Away on Saturday night, Berkshire singer-songwriter Adam Michael Rothberg.

Radio Beat

Another in our series of periodic tallies of the most-played recordings -- most new, some old - on our imaginary radio station:

1. Ori Kaplan Percussion Ensemble, Gongol (Knitting Factory)
2. Jessica Lurie, Motorbison Serenade (Zipa!)
3. David Krakauer, A New Hot One (Label Bleu)
4. Ballin' the Jack, The Big Head (Knitting Factory)
5. Jake, Snake Road (Desert Dog)
6. Celia, While I Lay Watching (Celia)
7. Drums and Tuba, Vinyl Killer (Righteous Babe)
8. Laco Tayfa, Ciftetelli (Traditional Crossroads)
9. Swinghammer, Vostok 6 (Righteous Babe)
10. Adam Michael Rothberg, All the Whispering