Odds and Ends 008
Rock After 55: Wise Maybe, Weary Definitely
By Xgau Apr 17, 2012 1:40AM
Lee Scratch Perry: Rise Again (MOD Technologies)
Surrounded by such coequals as Tunde Adebimpe, Sly Dunbar, and Hamid Drake, he‑-uh-oh‑-behaves himself ("Orthodox," "House of God") ***
Wanda Jackson: The Party Ain't Over (Nonesuch/Third Man)
Jack White hits the geriatric Christian hottie with songs and horns that remind us what a weirdo she must be ("Thunder on the Mountain," "Shakin' All Over") **
John Hiatt: Dirty Jeans and Mudslide Hymns (New West)
Decades past his last outright keeper and 60 this year, he continues to roll out listenable collections like he'll never stop ("Don't Wanna Leave You Now," "Damn This Town," "Detroit Town") **
Bonnie Raitt: Slipstream (Redwing)
Bartholin's glands don't fail me now ("Used to Rule the World," "Million Miles") **
Dr. John: Locked Down (Nonesuch)
"For my next trick I will shuck my jive and generalize indignantly over a declarative rock beat" ("Big Shot," "Locked Down") **
Rick Berlin: Paper Airplane (Hi-N-Dry)
"And Sean looked grim and said, `Suicide'" ("Sean Penn on Charlie Rose," "If I Wasn't Such a Bum") **
Steve Earle: I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive (New West)
There'll never be too many songs about death or George W. Bush ("Little Emperor," "Waitin' on the Sky") *
Marshall Chapman: Big Lonesome (Tall Girl)
Breakup album about a musician who up and died on her ("Big Lonesome," "I Love Everybody") *
169Comments
Apr 18, 2012 11:51AM
I've only read this most recent screen while Carola, who turns 67 Friday, gets a massage. Thanks for the past 20 comments' worth of wishes; I'll get to the others a little later. To Edgar I'll just say that it really is dark in the Cake Shop, to Kevin that I personally much prefer this format with all its inefficiencies--in part because I don't want to live my life online, and in part because MSN likes it that way and without MSN paying me there would be no EW.
So far we've had a fine time here. Trying to go upscale a little, my great and modestly priced motel cut out the free breakfast and invited us to buy breakfast in their restaurant. Instead Carola and I went to the supermarket and bought fixings, including half a pound of butter, an excellent roll and a less excellent croissant, and some good jam. Usually I am a Smart Balance guy, and like it fine--it's a good product that has reduced my just marginally high cholesterol. But man, did that butter taste good. Next week I'll behave myself.
Which reminds me--given what he's revealed of his dietary practices, what does Cardiologist Cam believe about cholesterol?
So far we've had a fine time here. Trying to go upscale a little, my great and modestly priced motel cut out the free breakfast and invited us to buy breakfast in their restaurant. Instead Carola and I went to the supermarket and bought fixings, including half a pound of butter, an excellent roll and a less excellent croissant, and some good jam. Usually I am a Smart Balance guy, and like it fine--it's a good product that has reduced my just marginally high cholesterol. But man, did that butter taste good. Next week I'll behave myself.
Which reminds me--given what he's revealed of his dietary practices, what does Cardiologist Cam believe about cholesterol?
Apr 17, 2012 3:44PM
As far as the poll discussion goes I have a couple points real quick:
1) I'd like to point out that the first thing I ever commented on was the discussion of the '69 poll, I took it as my excuse to jump into the comments. I know I'm not a typical newbie in that I had my dad pushing me to join, but it is an answer to the question of how new commentors see it.
2) I don't think anyone here finds every topic discussed interesting, or has something to add to every discussion, we all have different interests and there's no one person who has all the interests represented here. I know there are plenty of topics that are just over my head or I don't have anything to add and I don't join in on the conversations I don't need to join in on, whether it's because I don't have anything to add (the brit-pop discussion) or just for the sake of my dad (picnic-sex). I understand why some people don't like the polls, but please don't hold it against those of us that find it interesting.
3) Also everything my dad said :)
Apr 18, 2012 1:59PM
Wikipedia's so lame. How did they miss these Christgau Career Highlights?
--Instituted and monitored the Village Voice’s first dress code in 1975 (knit golf shirts and cleanly pressed slacks for the men, floral skirts and white blouses for the ladies)
--Refused to change the grade for Iggy Pop’s Party despite a tearful appeal from Iggy’s mom (he did briefly consider giving the thing an Incomplete)
--Bought Richard Meltzer his first beer
--Organized and directed the Occupy Boise movement entirely by postcard and fax machine
--Was the first person ever to say to Lester Bangs “That’s a bad cough; have you tried Romilar?”
--Curb-stomped James Chance in front of all of James’ friends
--Suggested to John Lennon that it “might be fun” if he inserted a couple of lines from “You Can’t Catch Me” into “Come Together”
--Danced on Jean-Baptiste Isabey’s grave at Pere Lachaise Cemetery in Paris (he meant to dance on Jim Morrison’s grave but was misdirected)
--Pimp-slapped and pistol-whipped James Chance at a Chance family reunion
--Threw a copy of Ellen Willis’s Beginning to See The Light at a pie-maker who was monopolizing Greil Marcus’ time
--Signed my copy of Don’t Stop Til You Get Enough at his 60th birthday party at EMP in Seattle (Thanks, Bob!)
--Decided his own Bill Laswell-produced debut album was a low B Minus, refused to release it
--Threw Ellen Willis at Greil Marcus to get an extra piece of pie
--Heckled James Chance to tears at James’ wedding
Apr 17, 2012 5:09PM
Re: the in-group aspects of EW, I think most successful forums (especially those with as small a number of regulars as EW has) eventually start veering off-topic on a frequent basis as regulars get to know each other and spend increasing time talking about the crazy sh!t they did last week-end rather than how John Hiatt's new one measures up to his previous albums. This is not undesirable at all - if the regulars are an interesting bunch and are welcoming to outsiders, newbies and lurkers will want to join even if (or because!) half the sh!t the regulars say seems obscure and nonsensical (kind of like how Xgau's writing pulled me in even if at first I couldn't figure out what he was on about half the time).
Quite frankly, I think there's a built-in ceiling to how many people this forum can attract - the potential audience for music criticism of any type, let alone a thoughtful kind that covers so much musical ground and tosses out so many of the purist assumptions that many indie and classic-rock fans cling to like their lives depend on it just isn't that big. And that's neither your fault nor mine nor Xgau's nor MSN's. We should consider ourselves damn lucky that we've had to deal with so few trolls and random Googlers and YouTube-style commenters.
Quite frankly, I think there's a built-in ceiling to how many people this forum can attract - the potential audience for music criticism of any type, let alone a thoughtful kind that covers so much musical ground and tosses out so many of the purist assumptions that many indie and classic-rock fans cling to like their lives depend on it just isn't that big. And that's neither your fault nor mine nor Xgau's nor MSN's. We should consider ourselves damn lucky that we've had to deal with so few trolls and random Googlers and YouTube-style commenters.
Apr 17, 2012 2:55PM
I'm not sure if this is still relevant right now, but regarding the polls: I've been something of a "lurker" here for a while (only commented a few times), and I really don't mind them (the polls). I find most of them pretty interesting, though I guess I could see how they might confuse people who are just discovering this blog. That being said, this community is probably the best online community I've ever seen! It's probably one of the only places I've found on the internet where people have genuinely insightful conversations about music and I'm very glad I discovered it. And Robert is a great critic, which I felt I should say, since this is his blog, and my comment otherwise is all about the other people who visit it.
Apr 18, 2012 8:53PM
Apr 17, 2012 12:59PM
I have a vague memory of our host jumping in some time ago, with a rather evenhanded take (maybe "disinterested") on the poll question: am I remembering right that he more-or-less said "go ahead if you want, just don't overdo it"?
And also to the point: it's kinda cute that Milo diagnosed Patrick's listomania (albeit with gruesome fast-and-loose language about addiction) on the same day he contributed a sweet list of faux-Beatles tunes himself! I just asked my shrink- brother for help on diagnosing this and he told me I should read up on the "narcissism of minor differences."
That plucky lad Alex Wilson needs no defending, certainly not by me. But I sure do get the heebie-jeebies when (insert-gender-neutral-term-for-graybeards) go too hard at young folks. There's just something, I don't know...sad about the kill your sons vibe. There's a great multigenerational conversation that goes on here at EW and I know it wouldn't work if there were rules of comportment. But, Milo, there are hierarchies of power that develop in virtual communities, as in the real world, and being older (not to mention being a widely-read and respected print and radio critic) brings with it special responsibility I think. Sometimes we old folks just have to bite our tongues, even when we think that the young people are dumb and full of whatever fluid it was they were talking about last thread.
And also to the point: it's kinda cute that Milo diagnosed Patrick's listomania (albeit with gruesome fast-and-loose language about addiction) on the same day he contributed a sweet list of faux-Beatles tunes himself! I just asked my shrink- brother for help on diagnosing this and he told me I should read up on the "narcissism of minor differences."
That plucky lad Alex Wilson needs no defending, certainly not by me. But I sure do get the heebie-jeebies when (insert-gender-neutral-term-for-graybeards) go too hard at young folks. There's just something, I don't know...sad about the kill your sons vibe. There's a great multigenerational conversation that goes on here at EW and I know it wouldn't work if there were rules of comportment. But, Milo, there are hierarchies of power that develop in virtual communities, as in the real world, and being older (not to mention being a widely-read and respected print and radio critic) brings with it special responsibility I think. Sometimes we old folks just have to bite our tongues, even when we think that the young people are dumb and full of whatever fluid it was they were talking about last thread.
Apr 17, 2012 9:25PM
I'm working through and loving the choice cuts above. Marshall Chapman is an old friend. She was just breaking through in Nashville when I was there, early 80s. Marshall was pure failed country going punk in attitude, where Jason and the Scorchers were punk going country right at the same time-- the schizophrenia of Nashville revealed. Marshall had huevos grandes-- she played in all the punk clubs, especially my alterna-home Cantrell's, which was a shockingly dissonant venue for a country artist in Nashville at that time. And she scared me. I'm pretty sure the first time I heard the phrase "fire crotch" was coming out of her mouth. That she's a lifer on the fringes of every rock movement that touches country music since then is a testament to her art and a sad statement about when the world will be ready for a female champion of a mas macho discipline. And she writes too. They Came To Nashville is not about her, it's reportage, so it varies based on the subjects. But the chapter about chasing Willie Nelson down and finally getting on stage with him is a School of Rock climax in real life.
Apr 17, 2012 11:09AM
I think the discussions that polls have engendered have been worthwhile and fun. In fact, I would venture to say that a couple of the more interesting posts the polls have produced have been by Milo himself. When not talking about ranking, which rarely happens except when the poll results are released, the polls create dialogue about the albums being considered. That could be disconcerting to people newly checking in ("Why are they talking about Nashville Skyline in the Etta James post?"), but our exchanges always go off into tangents not related to the music at hand, or does nobody remember the exchange between Alex, Irene and others a couple of days ago.
Apr 18, 2012 7:09PM
Is this a practical matter (i.e., easier to get people to take statins) or is he perhaps overemphasizing the health benefits of diet and exercise?
Exercise is easy. Exercise is a can't miss all-ages show. Perhaps it is so easy to measure the health benefits of exercise because exercise affects so many parts of our body. Aerobic exercise has substantial benefits on cardiovascular health. Exercise in kids reduces the probability of obesity and diabetes later on. And you older folks, don't forget about load-bearing exercise. Muscle mass is a strong predictor of quality of life as you get older.
Unless you are following diets for well-defined reasons (diabetes, high risk of heart disease etc), I don't see much evidence for value in fad diet phenomenology. But it's a little like being a fan of Jethro Tull-- hey, more power to you if you get into that stuff, just don't make me do it. There's a book called Just Tell Me What to Eat by Tim Harlan that provides sane information about how to eat well, and it must be pretty good because I wrote the blurb on the back cover.
Anyway, nuff that.
Apr 18, 2012 7:50AM
Apr 19, 2012 7:09PM
I suppose I take this too seriously, but it's always the mid-level artists that I mourn the most -- the contributors, not the stars. Carl Wilson, Al Jackson Jr., Clarence Clemons, Lee Allen, Levon Helm. The ones who couldn't be anything but musicians no matter how hard they tried. The populace may not know them all by name, but if you excised them from the music they played on, the world would sound distinctly different.
When I think of Levon Helm I see the picture of him in mid-song, at his drum kit, singing. In love with American music if anybody has ever been in love with anything. You can hear it; every roll, every off beat, every whoop and holler.
When I think of Levon Helm I see the picture of him in mid-song, at his drum kit, singing. In love with American music if anybody has ever been in love with anything. You can hear it; every roll, every off beat, every whoop and holler.
Apr 18, 2012 1:31PM
given what he's revealed of his dietary practices, what does Cardiologist Cam believe about cholesterol?
This isn't a question that's particularly well suited for this format, but let's try. As a marker, we know that high LDL cholesterol increases your vascular risk and low LDL cholesterol is associated with reduced risk. If your LDL is high, it is prudent to modify your diet, but if it isn't then the health benefits of dietary modification are fairly marginal-- ergo, although I am mostly pescetarian for matters of preference, I don't worry about going off the reservation sometimes with convenience food and the like.
Our thinking about drug therapy for high LDL has changed dramatically. Definitely statins are beneficial in reducing cardiac risk, but some drugs such as zetia, omega-3 fatty acids and niacin have recently been shown to have not much benefit. It may be that statins are beneficial because they are so powerful at reducing LDL, or it could be that they have effects other than or in addition to their effects on lipids that confer health benefits. The data on the benefits of statins is simply staggering (and yet people can still argue about it).
And then there is the whole prevention vs treatment issue. If we prevent all heart attacks from happening, then what are we going to do in all of the cath labs that we've built here in the U.S? There are more cath labs in the city of Chicago than in the entire country of Canada. But now we are talking about controlling health care costs, which is a very different issue.
Apr 17, 2012 2:19PM
Alex: I can't and won't speak for anyone else here, but I've never thought you were dumb. I have thought, and have written, that politically you and I don't inhabit the same universe, and that a discussion between us on the issues of the day would be pointless. But I've loved your music posts from the beginning, and I always worry about you when you vanish. I do wish you'd get a bit more Brit-specific in your observations--there must be something going on over there that we dumb Yanks don't know about (Oasis were huge in England and barely a blip here, so I looked forward to your perspective, and didn't get it). Anyway, rock on.
Apr 18, 2012 4:51AM
Apr 18, 2012 6:34AM
Apr 17, 2012 6:56PM
Apr 17, 2012 10:57AM
Given that Nora is obviously right that polls on this Board (as opposed to polls in general) are basically second order surveys of people already committed, at whatever precise level, to Christgau's writing (including me - that wasn't an accusation), so far as I can tell the precise use of polls here is to find outliers mentioned by one or another of you which might help me to build a more complete picture of what music I might have listened to if I had been there, rather than had listened to what Christgau told me to listen to. That's why my response to the profoundly orthodox results of the 1969 poll was to ask people which of their choices was not represented by the results, and why my great find from that poll was Jerry Butler's Ice On Ice.
Apr 19, 2012 4:40PM
Apr 18, 2012 8:37AM
Like Andrew Sarris in film, RC has been the best guide for anyone looking for great music for the last 40 years. I remember reading Rolling Stone Record Guide in my late teens and wondering how Let it Bleed and Exile on Main St only garnered 4 stars. While in B.Daltons I picked up the RC Guide to the 70's and turned to the Stones, whereupon I read the classic review on Exile that kinda changed my life. Thank you for guiding and informing us these past years and Happy 70th! Here's hoping MSN keeps Expert Witness longer than the NY Observer kept Sarris.
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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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