Skip to main content

Fun-Sized Reviews

109. Gnarls Barkley - St. Elsewhere (2006)

I can't believe that it has taken me this long to reveal my ultimate criteria for a good song: It should sound awesome playing over the loudspeakers in a store. This collaboration between Danger Mouse (he's the D.J.) and Cee-Lo (he's the soul singer) contains a goodly number of songs that fulfill that criteria. Both the songs and the CD make their point quickly, while managing to be both innovative and accessible.

Grade: B+
Fave Song: Storm Coming

110. Glen Phillips - Mr. Lemons (2006)

Ack! The artist behind my favorite album of 2005 returns, but all is not well. He's left the big-name collaborators behind, along with his electric guitar and the hooks. The songs are mostly quiet, and have a tendency to meander. A disappointment, but at least the title is accurate.

Grade: C-
Fave Song: Everything But You


111. Paul Simon - Surprise (2006)

Paul Simon has never made a bad album, and it doesn't seem he's about to start. On Surpise, he plays around with both traditional song and lyrical structure, but still manages to sound like himself. As the blue water/baby face cover indicates, the songs are concerned mostly with parenthood (7 of the 11 songs contain a word such as father, mother, children, baby, etc.), but nature imagery abounds (every song mentions some form of water). It's a few steps above his last couple of efforts.

Grade: B
Fave Song: Everything About It Is A Love Song

112. Rock Kills Kid - Are You Nervous? (2006)

Who ever thought Duran Duran would become so influential? The latest stylish pop synth band is Rock Kills Kid. They've got chops and songs and an ace producer (Jimmy Eat World maestro Mark Trombino) . Songs like Hide Away, Midnight and Hope Song provide thrills, but downer lyrics such as the ones on Life's A Bitch and Run Like Hell dampen the mood. The band should take some advice from Duran Duran themselves: "it doesn't have to be serious."

Grade: B-
Fave Song: Midnight

113. Dixie Chicks - Taking The Long Way (2006)

Rick Rubin and a host of famous helpers (John Mayer, Bonnie Raitt, Neil Finn, Sheryl Crow, Gary Louris, and Dan Wilson) are along, but the disc is all Chicks. The tempos are snappy (for the most part) and the lyrics sassy. The girls address their new Nashville outcast status at length, but not too much. There are love songs too! Though lots has been made of their move toward a poppier sound, the album seems most akin to their first effort, Wide Open Spaces. Both that record and this one are full of highlights and harmonies.

Grade: A
Fave Song: So Hard

Comments

wcdixon said…
I dig these music blog sites...

Want to get the Paul Simon and the Gnarl's Barkley, and really enjoying the new Dixie Chicks.

Pulled out Matthew Sweet's 'Girlfriend' yesterday - man, that was a great cd...might end up on my top ten if I made such a list.

Going to browse a while...
5:03 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

REO Speedwagon: R.E.O. Speedwagon (1971)

REO Speedwagon got its start in the late 1960s on the campus of the University of Illinois in Champaign/Urbana. The band grew out of a friendship between a students Neal Doughty (piano/keyboard) and Alan Gratzer (drums). Joining up with a couple of other musicians, they took the name R.E.O. Speedwagon. It wasn't long before they started getting gigs at parties and bars, doing covers of the hits of the day. The band cycled through several players in its first three years, with Gratzer and Doughty as the only constants. One-by-one they added the members that would form the first "official" lineup: singer Terry Luttrell in early 1968, bassist Gregg Philbin later that summer, and guitarist Gary Richrath at the end of 1970. Richrath was a native of Peoria, 90 miles northwest of Champaign, and had essentially stalked the band until they let him join. It was a good move, as he not only an accomplished guitarist, but also a songwriter. With Richrath the band ascended to the n...
Post a Comment
Read more

Stuck, or Obsession Cessastion

You may have noticed that things have slowed down around here. I had the summer off from teaching, and I spent it with my 7 month-old son. I gave myself permission to make this blog less of a priority. Well, "less of a priority" is putting it lightly. Initially, I considered an abrupt retirement. But then I reconsidered. Maybe the proximity to Brett Favre is causing this. If you're a long time reader, this is probably not all that surprising to you. Since 2007, it has become an annual ritual for me to soul-search about my waning interest in music. First I blamed an inability to express myself and a lack of quality music . Then in 2008 I cited new technology and the death of the album . Last year I wrote about how my changing life priorities hindered my ability to seek out new music. I've done a lot of thinking about it this summer and in truth I believe this was all just dancing around the issue, a slow realization of something I didn't want to admit to myse...
7 comments
Read more

Rock Bottom: The Beach Boys

The one constant in every established artist's oeuvre is the bad album , the one that's reviled by both fans and critics. Those unlovable albums are the ones this feature, Rock Bottom , is concerned with. Here's how it works: I've consulted three sources, the AllMusic Guide and Rolling Stone (for the critical point-of-view) and Amazon.com (for the fan perspective*). The album with the lowest combined rating from both sources is the one I'll consider the worst. I may not always agree with the choice, and my reviews will reflect that. I'll also offer a considered alternative. Finally, there are some limits. The following types of albums don't count: 1) b-sides or remix compilations, 2) live albums, 3) albums recorded when the band was missing a vital member, and 4) forays into a different genres (i.e. classical). *A note about Amazon.com. I consider this the fan perspective, because most people who choose to review albums on this site are adoring fans of ...
1 comment
Read more