By Thomas Conner
© Tulsa World

Hanson
"Middle of Nowhere"
(Mercury)

Say what you will about these three well-scrubbed rich boys --
they're going to be big. They'll take the unique sound of south
Tulsa to the world!

Oh, I, too, thought I was having acid flashbacks when I heard
that these cherubic, largely ignorable local whinsies had not only
landed a major-label deal but hooked up with the Dust Brothers to
produce it. I thought, it's a wonder anyone could turn a doorknob,
what with all the greased palms.

But however it came to be, “Middle of Nowhere'' is just the
kind of tight, slick record that will beat us over the head for
years to come. Over each track's hurried, lite R&B and incessant
record scratching, 13-year-old Taylor doesn't just sound like
1967-vintage Michael Jackson, he also sounds like 1996-vintage
Michael Jackson. Sometimes his thin coo melts your childlike heart
(“Weird''), and sometimes his roar is both “Dangerous'' and
“Bad'' (“Look at You'').

The one thing that will rescue Hanson
from the inevitable oblivion of acts of their ilk, i.e. New Kids on
the Block, is that they play instruments (11-year-old Zac is a
maniac on the drums) and participate in their writing of their
songs. Yes, Mercury hauled in some bigwigs to pen hits for the
album, but the first single, the frighteningly catchy “MMMBop''
(from their Tulsa indie record of the same name), and a couple of
the most interesting tracks are the ones with Hansons in the credit
lines. These kids grew up listening to classic soul records, and
when those influences show up through their young, modern
rock-saturated filters, the result is some surprisingly fresh
music. Maybe, just maybe, youth is not wasted on the young.

Regardless, though, “MMMBop'' debuted at No. 16 last week, and
it will be drilling into your head around every corner in no time.

Meanwhile, the Tulsa sound still resides peacefully in Tulsa.

By Thomas Conner
© Tulsa World

Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey
"Live in Tokyo"
(Jacob Fred)

Norman Vincent Peale would be proud of these guys. They think so
positively. They envision their future. At least, we can only hope
this is their future. "Live in Tokyo'' — a title slightly more
ambitious as this funk-jazz band's debut, "Live at the Lincoln
Continental'' — starts with the roar of a Tokyo stadium crowd and
an announcer that introduces the band in Japanese. They may not
have come close to playing Tokyo yet, but if their ambitions play
out and this great groove holds up, these guys will be on a world
tour any day.

The world wishes, anyway. At heart, the MC5 was nothin' but a
party, and Jacob Fred lives that ideal better than any fusion
knock-off that's come along since today's thrift store clothes were
new on the racks. These guys meld jazz, funk and rap with the
fluidity of shamans so that you're making weird snake movements
with your limbs long before your ego chimes in with how silly you
look.

"Live in Tokyo'' is a quantum leap forward form the debut disc.
The sound is better, the songs are better and the whole band is
more assured. The atmospherics on such dreamy swirls as "Hymn
1008'' are the epitome of control, and the rap — a highlighted
element — is heavy. "Captain Funk'' is literally a scream; never
has praise of local eateries sounded so unbelievably righteous. Say
amen, buy the thing.

By Thomas Conner
© Tulsa World

Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey
"Live at the Lincoln Continental''
(Blue Horn)

A Tulsa club act that's not guitar-bass-drums is
always a welcome relief, but the Jazz Odyssey is something else.
This disc, recorded at Eclipse and Club One, captures the band's
precarious teetering between funk and jazz. Great party disc.