The Jimmy Carl Black Story

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Guitarist Jon Larsen's The Jimmy Carl Black Story is a follow-up to his earlier Strange News from Mars, once again featuring former Frank Zappa drummer Jimmy Carl Black reprises his role as a spacy narrator, reading text written by Larsen with a fair amount of references toward Zappa's songs from the early years, especially excerpts from "Lonesome Cowboy Burt" on 200 Motels. Unfortunately, this time the music isn't as strong as the first volume, with Larsen songs often coming across as early-'70s Zappa-lite, a watered-down imitation of the sextet that the late guitarist led with George Duke and marimba player/percussionist Ruth Underwood, but without a saxophone (a harmonica is used at times). The music ranges from soft fusion to reggae and light rock, but none of the tunes ever stick in one's memory for long. The second disc is a "rockumentary," essentially, a lengthy audio interview with Black. Sadly, Jimmy Carl Black lost his battle with cancer around the time of this CD's release.