Another Saturday, another visit to the local library, to stock up on kids' books and some CDs. Sadly, someone had reserved William Gibson's "Pattern Recognition", so I had to give it back even though I'm only half way through. Serious crimes have been committed on flimsier grounds.
The Band “The Shape I’m In: The Very Best of The Band”: Many years ago I was listening to Double J late one night, when the DJ put on the Band’s version of Bob Dylan's “I Shall Be Released” and went out for a nature call or a cup of coffee. The record stuck, in the middle of the line “I see my light come shining”, forever. Or, at least, for a very long time. Listening for possibly the first time since, it sounded wrong when it didn't stick this time.
Burning Spear “Living Dub, Volume One”: Is there such a thing as bad dub, in the way that there’s bad jazz? It’s a harder thing to gauge, I think. You know bad jazz as soon as you hear it. With dub, once the echo chamber kicks in my critical faculties go out the window. Minds may differ where the On-U Sound label is concerned; but anything from the Jamaican sound factories of the 1970s does the trick. Winston Rodney may not be recognisable as a titan of dub, but there is nothing to be lost by having this record in your milk crate.
The Orb “U.F.Orb”: Dub action here, too, with a barking dog no less (echoes (pun intented, I guess) of Lee Perry's infamous cows?). The entire Orb/Future Sounds of London/Underworld/Aphex Twin movement dodged me at the time, so I don't bring any of my usual preconceived ideas to this one. (Who said that?) Now I've listened to this, and totally got into Underworld, I think I may have made an error of judgment. I don't remember what put me off in the first place. I think Adrienne said something like, it's like Kraftwerk without any warmth. Which, y'know, can't be argued with; but, the sounds, man, the sounds ...
Freddie Hubbard “The Artistry of Freddie Hubbard”: No bad jazz here (see above). Just good solid bebop from the Impulse label, circa 1962. Even trombonophobes like myself can enjoy.
Cowboy Junkies “Pale Sun Crescent Moon”: I would have preferred “The Trinity Sessions”, but it seems that that one has already been destroyed, in the way that only CDs borrowed from a library can be destroyed, or has been returned to another branch. Cowboy Junkies are another band floating on the edge of the “must listen to” list, a list that gets longer by the week.
Bjork “Vespertine”: I find Bjork spectacular in small doses but quite wearing over the length of a CD. There are two songs near the start of this disc that are totally gorgeous. It also has fabulous sounds: glitches; harp; music box. I prescribe one track per day, and see me in the morning. By the way, there was a great profile of her by Alex Ross is the New Yorker a few weeks ago. You may or may not be able to find it on his web site, “The Rest Is Noise”. Go and have a look; try also to find his piece on Dylan from around five years ago, which should be the first and last word on that subject.
“Organ Jazz” (one of a series on Fantasy records): Proof of how much fun a cheap, badly packaged compilation can be. Did I already say that the one thing I fought for (and lost) with the house extension was a Hammond Organ and a room to house it in?
Orb “Orblivion”: Whatever I said about this, I would be lying. I’ve listened to the first two tracks only. This is five years after the one referred to earlier. A lot can happen in five years, even if your music moves at a glacial pace to begin with.
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds “Nocturama”: My brain’s too tired to give this the going over it deserves. There are flashes of Cave’s best songwriting here, the Seeds are (“Babe, I’m) On Fire(”), and if nothing else it’s notable for being Blixa’s last go-round with the band. As Cave’s catalogue keeps growing, it is harder for a new record to establish itself as the one you would reach for in a given mood/situation. Whether we have had the last truly revelatory Nick Cave record remains to be seen. Neither this (too patchy) nor “... and no more shall we part”(way too long) quite matches the clarity of “The Boatman’s Call”; but you could easily put together a package of edited highlights that would go very close. He certainly still deserves his place as national living treasure.
