23
Dec
2002
With the rolling wheels of the record industry grinding down for a holiday break, here are more of my picks for the best of 2002. Best Spoken Word CD of the Year: Paul Krassner - Irony Lives! (Artemis Records) Recorded earlier this year in the post-September 11 dialogue, this thinking-man's comedy release comes from the fertile and skewed mind of the co-founder of the Youth International Party (Yippies) and all-around muckraker, a nail among the balloons of government and the media elite.
From his days on the run from the FBI with Jerry Rubin and Abbie Hoffman, to publishing The Realist from 1958 to 1974, to numerous books published in the 1990s, Krassner's scope takes deadly aim at the hypocrisy of our abundant society and consumer culture. While conservative listeners might have to sit on their hands to keep from drawing up their fists in anger, you might be surprised to hear your own mind click along with his logic between the laughs. Wide-eyed and sharply perceptive, this founding father of the underground press has the most fun shining his light on the media. Catching blips and sound bites from the mainstream, his take on major news networks' spin on the tragedy, overworked terrorists, and homeland security is brilliantly funny and refreshingly paranoid. Other highlights include his observations on the CIA, conspiracy theorists, and induction into the Cannabis Cup Hall of Fame.
Best Cover-Concept CDs of the Year:
Okay, I admit it. I'm a cover fiend, my ears perked for those perfect moments when an artist transcends the original version of a song and calls it his or her own. From tender, loving tributes to wacky juxtapositions of unbelievable pairings, the art of the cover version is magic, drawing puzzled grins: "Was that really what I think I just heard?" Here's my pick for three shining stars of the musical salute, each one proving that maybe, it really is the singer, not the song.
Various Artists - When Pigs Fly: Songs You Never Thought You'd Hear (Xemu/Aorta Records)
Featuring a dozen mind-melting tracks such as Don Ho's take on Peter Gabriel's "Shock the Monkey" and Lesley Gore of "It's My Party" fame covering AC/DC's "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap," this collection has the most giggles and outrageous delight. Where else could one conceive indie inspiration Ani DiFranco and martial-arts superstar Jackie Chan singing a duet of Nat King Cole's classic "Unforgettable," or Billy Preston's R&B funkification of Duran Duran's "Girls on Film"? I can't pick my personal favorite track: a droll delivery of Cypress Hills' "Insane in the Brain" by The Connells, or Alex Chilton & The Box Tops' spin on Blondie's "Call Me." Not all fun and games, the disc does feature a tear-jerking version of Louis Armstrong's "What a Wonderful World" by Nashville legend Roy Clark.
Eva Cassidy - Imagine (Blix Street Records)
Tragically haunting, this collection of previously unreleased tracks from the late singer opens with a beautiful cover of Paul Anka's "It Doesn't Matter Anymore," best known in the hit renditions by Buddy Holly and Linda Ronstadt. Primarily discovered by most of the world after her death at the age of 33 in 1996, Cassidy possessed a most perfect voice - relaxed and pensive like a deep warm bath, soaring pure and free. Known for her gorgeous interpretation of other writers' songs, these selections come from the archives of her limited recording output, and feature John Lennon' s title track, Sandy Denny's "Who Knows Where the Time Goes," and Gordon Lightfoot's "Early Morning Rain." Other highlights include her soft purr on Billie Holiday's "You've Changed" and Little Willy John's "Fever."
Luther Wright & The Wrongs - Rebuild the Wall (Back Porch/Snakeye Music)
Knee-slappin' and delightfully weird, this steel-guitar, lonesome-backwoods howler is a corn-fed cover of Pink Floyd's double-LP opus The Wall in its entirety. Strolling along with finger-picked six-strings, fiddle, banjo, and clarinet, it's uncanny how well classics such as "Mother" and "Run Like Hell" sound in this genre, asking the eternal question, "Daddy, what did you leave behind for me?" More serious than Hee-Haw silly, these good ol' boys have their tongues in their cheeks and their hands on the pedal-steel guitar, with the sound of drifting cattle at the end of "Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2," mooing in the moonlight. Highly recommended to tweak the mind of Floyd fanatics.
Television Alert:
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno welcomes Tyrese on Thursday, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band on Friday, and Snoop Dogg on Tuesday; Late Night with Conan O'Brien hosts Delbert McClinton on Thursday overnight; The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn features Joe Cocker on Thursday overnight, Joshua Redman on Friday overnight, and Joan Osborne on Monday overnight; and Last Call with Carson Daly sits down with Queens of the Stone Age on Friday overnight.
New Releases Coming Tuesday, December 31:
... and like the winds, young grasshopper, are subject to change
DJ Shadow - School House Funk (Quannam) compilation
Foxy Brown - Ill Na Na II: The Fever (Def Jam) with guests Anita Baker and Lauryn Hill
various artists - We're a Happy Family: A Tribute to the Ramones (DV8/Columbia) long-anticipated tribute project, with Tom Waits, Metallica, U2, The Pretenders, Garbage, Billy Corgan, Static X, Motorhead, Rob Zombie, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Rancid, The Offspring, and Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder - who covers "I Believe in Miracles." Zombie also provides the cover art, and fan Stephen King contributes liner notes.
Best Cover-Concept CDs of the Year:
Okay, I admit it. I'm a cover fiend, my ears perked for those perfect moments when an artist transcends the original version of a song and calls it his or her own. From tender, loving tributes to wacky juxtapositions of unbelievable pairings, the art of the cover version is magic, drawing puzzled grins: "Was that really what I think I just heard?" Here's my pick for three shining stars of the musical salute, each one proving that maybe, it really is the singer, not the song.
Various Artists - When Pigs Fly: Songs You Never Thought You'd Hear (Xemu/Aorta Records)
Featuring a dozen mind-melting tracks such as Don Ho's take on Peter Gabriel's "Shock the Monkey" and Lesley Gore of "It's My Party" fame covering AC/DC's "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap," this collection has the most giggles and outrageous delight. Where else could one conceive indie inspiration Ani DiFranco and martial-arts superstar Jackie Chan singing a duet of Nat King Cole's classic "Unforgettable," or Billy Preston's R&B funkification of Duran Duran's "Girls on Film"? I can't pick my personal favorite track: a droll delivery of Cypress Hills' "Insane in the Brain" by The Connells, or Alex Chilton & The Box Tops' spin on Blondie's "Call Me." Not all fun and games, the disc does feature a tear-jerking version of Louis Armstrong's "What a Wonderful World" by Nashville legend Roy Clark.
Eva Cassidy - Imagine (Blix Street Records)
Tragically haunting, this collection of previously unreleased tracks from the late singer opens with a beautiful cover of Paul Anka's "It Doesn't Matter Anymore," best known in the hit renditions by Buddy Holly and Linda Ronstadt. Primarily discovered by most of the world after her death at the age of 33 in 1996, Cassidy possessed a most perfect voice - relaxed and pensive like a deep warm bath, soaring pure and free. Known for her gorgeous interpretation of other writers' songs, these selections come from the archives of her limited recording output, and feature John Lennon' s title track, Sandy Denny's "Who Knows Where the Time Goes," and Gordon Lightfoot's "Early Morning Rain." Other highlights include her soft purr on Billie Holiday's "You've Changed" and Little Willy John's "Fever."
Luther Wright & The Wrongs - Rebuild the Wall (Back Porch/Snakeye Music)
Knee-slappin' and delightfully weird, this steel-guitar, lonesome-backwoods howler is a corn-fed cover of Pink Floyd's double-LP opus The Wall in its entirety. Strolling along with finger-picked six-strings, fiddle, banjo, and clarinet, it's uncanny how well classics such as "Mother" and "Run Like Hell" sound in this genre, asking the eternal question, "Daddy, what did you leave behind for me?" More serious than Hee-Haw silly, these good ol' boys have their tongues in their cheeks and their hands on the pedal-steel guitar, with the sound of drifting cattle at the end of "Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2," mooing in the moonlight. Highly recommended to tweak the mind of Floyd fanatics.
Television Alert:
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno welcomes Tyrese on Thursday, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band on Friday, and Snoop Dogg on Tuesday; Late Night with Conan O'Brien hosts Delbert McClinton on Thursday overnight; The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn features Joe Cocker on Thursday overnight, Joshua Redman on Friday overnight, and Joan Osborne on Monday overnight; and Last Call with Carson Daly sits down with Queens of the Stone Age on Friday overnight.
New Releases Coming Tuesday, December 31:
... and like the winds, young grasshopper, are subject to change
DJ Shadow - School House Funk (Quannam) compilation
Foxy Brown - Ill Na Na II: The Fever (Def Jam) with guests Anita Baker and Lauryn Hill
various artists - We're a Happy Family: A Tribute to the Ramones (DV8/Columbia) long-anticipated tribute project, with Tom Waits, Metallica, U2, The Pretenders, Garbage, Billy Corgan, Static X, Motorhead, Rob Zombie, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Rancid, The Offspring, and Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder - who covers "I Believe in Miracles." Zombie also provides the cover art, and fan Stephen King contributes liner notes.
