Deer Tick/Lost Notebooks of Hank Williams
Beyond the Eternal Old-Timey
Divided 50-50 fast ones-slow ones, this doesn't rock as unreservedly as the bar-burning "The Bump," "Something to Brag About," and "Let's All Go to the Bar" want you to think. But it's sure the right course correction for guys who've always fetishized the eternal old-timey more than any band from goddamn Providence should. There's release along the lines of "I don't care if you puke in my ride/Let's all go to the bar/Baby just as long as you take your piss outside/Let's all go to the bar." And on drummer Dennis Ryan's "Clownin' Around" there's an equally satisfying release from heroin, the closet, child abuse, or some combination of the three‑-maybe prison, maybe death, maybe hell. A MINUS
The Lost Notebooks of Hank Williams (Egyptian/CMF/Columbia)
Unlike Woody Guthrie, Williams is loved more for his singing than his lyrics, and boy does some of this retrofitted doggerel lack character as entuned and delivered. Hank's granddaughter Holly and Amy's hubby Vince you'd guess, Uncle Merle reciting a farewell sermon probably not. But what you definitely wouldn't figure is Nashville tastemonger Patty Loveless accessing her inner twang or a Dylan named Jakob grabbing an unusually witty lament (OK, maybe he had dibs of some kind). And what you'd only hope is Alan Jackson imparting just the right gravity to the despairing opener‑-or Jack White two-stepping his find so lustily you know he has an all-Hank cover album on his life list, and that it can't possibly match up. B PLUS
burraburrahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greasy_Truckers_Live_at_Dingwalls_Dance_Hallgreasy howya doin'?
Surprise, surprise, the Henry Cow tracks are the standouts (Gong not bad) and, as the entry notes, finally available elsewhere (though pricey).
Oh, those wacky Pitchfork kids...The same Ian Cohen who yesterday wrote that he kinda sorta likes the new Coldplay record (7.0) today hates (he actually uses that word) the new Deer Tick record (3.9). And at face the review isn't poorly written, but I'll be damned if I can follow the logic behind the enmity. (Tried to post an excerpt, but...well, you know...) Anyway, we get it, man. Deer Tick are better live--lots of bands are. But what, exactly, about the material, performances, or production on Divine Providence engenders "hate"? (Or is it simply that Deer Tick's 15 minutes of Pitchfork fame are up?)
I've especially been enjoying "Now It's Your Turn," the opening of which seems to act as the (we didn't know there was one) missing link between two 1976 releases: Warren Zevon's "Hasten Down the Wind" and the Stones' "Memory Motel."
hmm...I call that Hull list below the "fich I need more money and time" list...
- Miles Davis: The Complete Live at the Plugged Nickel (Columbia, 7CD)
- Rahsaan Roland Kirk: Rahsaan: The Complete Mercury Recordings of Roland Kirk (Mercury, 10CD)
- John Coltrane: The Classic Quartet: Complete Impulse! Studio Recordings (Impulse, 8CD)
- Eric Dolphy: Complete Prestige Recordings (Prestige, 9CD)
- Miles Davis: The Miles Davis Quintet, 1965-68: The Complete Columbia Studio Recordings (Columbia/Legacy, 6CD)
- Dexter Gordon: The Complete Blue Note Sixties Sessions (Blue Note, 6CD)
- Sonny Rollins: The Complete RCA Victor Recordings (RCA, 6CD)
- Art Ensemble of Chicago: Art Ensemble 1967-68 (Nessa, 5CD)
- Herbie Hancock: The Complete Blue Note Sixties Sessions (Blue Note, 6CD)
- Paul Desmond: The Complete RCA Victor Recordings (RCA, 5CD
Deer Tick's garage-band-Iggy peaks early and more or less hobbles to a close (the 30 minutes of silence + bonus track gimmick must die a swift, merciless death, btw [did Cobain really blow grey matter for the likes of this?]); love the drummer's track. the HW thang is far more consistently hilarious, tho durn near all over creation aesthetically. good fun; doubt i'd be willing to pay for either. next.
Deer Tick's garage-band-Iggy peaks early and more or less hobbles to a close
And not coincidentally, most of the fast ones come early. Everything's clicking for the first five songs or so, but it's a tougher go when the tempos slow down. Can't avoid comparing it to the Middle Brother CD and noting how on that one the others throw McCauley into relief, or at times just relieve him.
Hawkwind
about the blogger
Starting in 1967, Robert Christgau has covered popular music for The Village Voice, Esquire, Blender, Playboy, Rolling Stone, and many other publications. He teaches in New York University's Clive Davis Department of Recorded Music, maintains a comprehensive website at robertchristgau.com, and has published five books based on his journalism. He has written for MSN Music since 2006.
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