Ritual de lo Habitual by Jane's Addiction

Ritual de lo Habitual by Jane’s Addiction

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Ritual de lo Habitual by Jane's AddictionReleased in the summer of 1990, Ritual de lo Habitual was the third overall album and second studio release by Jane’s Addiction. This critically acclaimed album was at once on the razor’s edge of the emerging alternative movement and the last release by the group before their initial breakup in 1991. Stylistically, Ritual de lo Habitual is loosely divided into two halves with a group of frenzied rockers early and some extended and theatrical tracks later on the record.

Jane’s Addiction was formed in Los Angeles in 1985 by lead vocalist Perry Farrell and bassist Eric Avery. Soon drummer Stephen Perkins and guitarist Dave Navarro joined the group to the round out the quartet. The group was wildly successful on the LA club scene and, after releasing their self-titled 1987 live album on an independent record label, they entertained offers from many major labels before signing with Warner Bros. Records. In 1988, the group recorded and released Nothing’s Shocking.

Producer Dave Jerden worked with the group on Nothing’s Shocking and stayed on for Ritual de lo Habitual. While the sessions produced quality music, they were marred by internal conflicts over drug use and royalty splits. Upon release of Ritual de lo Habitual, there was controversy over its album cover and so two packaging versions were created with one having a “clean” cover.


Ritual de lo Habitual by Jane’s Addiction
Released: August 21, 1990 (Warner Bros.)
Produced by: Dave Jerden & Perry Farrell
Recorded: Track Record, North Hollywood, CA, 1989-1990
Track Listing Group Musicians
Stop!
No One’s Leaving
Ain’t No Right
Obvious
Been Caught Stealing
Three Days
Then She Did …
Of Course
Classic Girl
Perry Farrell – Lead Vocals, Guitar, Piano
Dave Navarro – Guitars
Eric Avery – Bass
Stephen Perkins – Drums
 
Ritual de lo Habitual by Jane's Addiction

In a bit of irony, the song that starts things off is entitled “Stop!” and, after a spoken word intro by guest Cindy Lair, the tune comes in with pure energy and it doesn’t relent until the moderately timed mid section before it comes back with equal fury during Navarro’s frenzied guitar lead. “No One’s Leaving” is more rhythmically based than the opener but with equal energy, especially during a blistering guitar lead. “Ain’t No Right” is a short track built on Avery’s solo bass to accompany Farrell’s amoral lyrics.

The next track, “Obvious”, features a rich, psychedelic like beginning over a steady rhythm by Perkins. This song has different approach and vibe than anything previous on album and it features guest Geoff Stradling on piano. “Been Caught Stealing” is the most indelible tune on the album with plenty of inventive production, from the opening dog barks to the wild riffs and simultaneous counter-riffs to the funky dance rhythms to direct, storytelling confessional lyrics.

Jane's Addiction, 1990

Next comes a series of extended tracks that make up the richly produced second half of the album. The best of these is “Three Days”, a nearly eleven minute track which constantly builds in intensity. It begins with a haunting and deliberative first section before it gets rhythmic with the intense drumming of Perkins at about three and a half minutes in. Navarro adds an ethereal guitar lead over this before the piece migrates to its intense final section. The next two extended tracks are not quite as interesting. The eight minute long “Then She Did…” starts fine as a moody ballad with interesting riffs and charms but the rest of the song doesn’t do much beyond adding some additional musical arranging. The seven minute, Eastern flavored “Of Course” is dominated by the violin of Charlie Bisharat. The album concludes with the traditional rock ballad, “Classic Girl”, featuring great guitar textures throughout that help close the album out.

Ritual de lo Habitual has been certified 2× Platinum in the US and the band embarked on a lengthy tour to support the album from late 1990 well into 1991, which included headlining the first Lollapalooza festival, which Farrell co-created. Later in the year Avery and Navarro left the group and Jane’s Addiction disbanded for the initial time.

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1990 images

Part of Classic Rock Review’s celebration of 1990 albums.

Ritchie Blakmore's Rainbow

Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow

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Ritchie Blakmore's RainbowOriginating as a side project for Ritchie Blackmore while he was still the guitarist for Deep Purple, Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow turned out to be the debut studio album for Rainbow, the new group that would be Blackmore’s sole focus for nearly a decade to come. This album, which found critical acclaim and notoriety for its fantasy based lyrics combined with it’s more direct heavy rock sound, was composed and delivered by Blackmore along with members of the American band Elf.

Blackmore co-founded Deep Purple in 1968 and saw that group through stylistic and personnel changes before they reached the top of the rock world with the 1972 classic album Machine Head. However, tensions in the group led to the departure of lead vocalist Ian Gillan and bassist Roger Glover the following year and the pair were replaced by David Coverdale and Glenn Hughes respectively. This new lineup of Deep Purple released a pair of 1974 albums, Burn and Stormbringer, which saw a stylistic shift towards seventies style funk rock, a style of which Blackmore was not all too fond.

In late 1974, Blackmore entered a studio in Florida with members of Elf, a group fronted by Ronnie James Dio which had opened for Deep Purple on a previous tour and of whom Blackmore had been very impressed. The intent was to record and release a solo single, but Blackmore found the experience so satisfying that he decided to extend the sessions to a full album. The group traveled to Musicland Studios in Munich, West Germany with producer Martin Birch to record Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow. With this further positive recording experience, Blackmore decided to leave Deep Purple and become a full time member of Rainbow.


Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow by Rainbow
Released: August 4, 1975 (Polydor)
Produced by: Ritchie Blackmore, Martin Birch, & Ronnie James Dio
Recorded: Musicland Studios, Munich, February – March 1975
Side One Side Two
Man on the Silver Mountain
Self Portrait
Black Sheep of the Family
Catch the Rainbow
Snake Charmer
Temple of the King
If You Don’t Like Rock n’ Roll
Sixteenth Century Greensleeves
Still I’m Sad
Primary Musicians
Ronnie James Dio – Lead Vocals
Ritchie Blackmore – Guitars
Micky Lee Soule – Piano, Keyboards
Craig Gruber – Bass
Gary Driscoll – Drums

Right from the start, “Man on the Silver Mountain”, seems at least a half decade ahead of its time as it delivers a style common in the 1980s, with Dio’s dynamic vocals over simple rock riffing and rhythms. This became the debut single by Rainbow and remains one of their best known radio tracks. “Self Portrait” features a complex time signature due to the execution by drummer Gary Driscoll and bassist Craig Gruber and this track is highlighted by Blackmore’s fantastic, bluesy lead.

“Black Sheep of the Family” is a cover of a song by the band Quatermass and it adds a fine upbeat, almost conventional pop break on the first side. This song was the intended single that Blackmore originally recorded in ’74. “Catch the Rainbow” is an extended bluesy ballad to end the original first side, highlighted by surprising co-lead vocals / medley by Shoshana and Blackmore’s long guitar-lead outro. To start Side 2, “Snake Charmer” is built with some interesting guitar riffs and layers.

Rainbow in 1975

“Temple of the King” is a real highlight of the second side, as a track with a medieval tenor and tone with a calm, moderate delivery. This song features more great bass playing by Gruber along with harmonized vocals to accompany Blackmore’s crisp, moody guitar lead and later dissolve into a classical style acoustic in outtro. “If You Don’t Like Rock n’ Roll” is a good time, pure rocker with choppy piano by Micky Lee Soule, who also adds a later piano lead. “Sixteenth Century Greensleeves”is a hard rocker with more medieval lyrics (albeit no real musical interpretation of the traditional English folk song from 1580). Here, Soule plays a clavinet to add to the rock effect as Dio expertly delivers the lyric. The album ends rather oddly with an instrumental cover of the Yardbirds’ “Still I’m Sad” from their 1965 album Having a Rave Up. This instrumental features a hyper blues riff with tremendous percussion by Driscoll throughout.

Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow was a fairly successful commercial album, reaching the Top 30 in the USA and nearly hitting the Top 10 in the UK. Ronnie James Dio has cited this release as his favorite Rainbow album. Beyond Dio however, Blackmore was unhappy with the rest of the former Elf line-up and he soon released everybody except for Dio for the 1976 follow-up release, Rainbow Rising, and subsequent international tours.

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1975 Images

Part of Classic Rock Review’s celebration of 1975 albums.