The Album Review Club - Week #147 - (page 1942) - Blonde On Blonde - Bob Dylan

RobMCFC said:
Car Wheels on a Gravel Road – Lucinda Williams

In a previous review I mentioned “grit” and subsequently struggled to explain exactly what I meant. Well, this album has it in spades: an unconventional voice, rustic instruments that sound real, a well-produced album that doesn’t sound like it’s been over-produced and lyrics that talk of people and places that you can picture, or at least imagine.

I made so many notes whilst listening to this that I’d bore you all to tears if I wrote it all here, so I’ll just give you the highlights.

“Car Wheels on a Gravel Road” – fantastic - the mandolin after each chorus gives it a great feel.

“2 Kool 2 be 4-Gotten” - Despite the awful title and worse syntax this is a nice spritely/poppy number, giving a real flavour of the South with its mention of “taking up serpents”, june bugs and hurricanes.

“Can’t Let Go” – superb song and blues guitar, but it’s a pity that it’s a cover version. I always feel a little cheated when I love a song that I hear for the first time and then find out it’s not the artist’s own. However, it is a great performance and one cover in a collection of otherwise original songs is fair enough.

“Joy” – I love the vocals and guitars. Listen carefully at the start of the song – you can hear the dobro in the left speaker and the electric guitar on the right.

There are a few songs on here that on my first listen, I thought sounded “a bit too country” even for me. But I was wrong, even these songs are elevated by the accordion, the dobro, the mandolin, Lucinda Williams’ voice or some other element that makes you sit up and take notice.

There are so many things that I love about this album because it’s right up my street. I love albums that make good use of accordion, mandolin and what is probably my favourite instrument in music: the resonator/dobro. It’s such an amazing sound that I could listen to it all day. Added to this “sonic pallette” is the lyrics, which mention people, places, travel, geography – again, all things that I love about good songs.

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Lucinda Williams has a great unconventional voice. @Citizen of Legoland said that it sounded like Sheryl Crow and he’s on the money in terms of the voice, because she does sound very much like her on a lot of tracks.

Having Roy Bittan (Springsteen’s long-time piano player) play Hammond and accordion on the album is another plus, as is having the great Steve Earle producing.

At first, I was thinking an 8 or a 9 for this, but even the songs that I thought were weaker grabbed me on the second and third listens. If I was weighing this against the very best albums in my collection, this would probably still be a 9, but I don’t think anybody could nominate a better album I haven’t heard before, so for the purposes of this thread, for the first time, I’ll go the full 10/10.

Well done @bennyboy, a superb choice (chef’s kiss).
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Thats a superb review Rob (I mean nicely written as well as complimentary).
 
RobMCFC said:
The bottom line is we can't all like the same thing. I could see why Lucinda Williams voice would put some people off. Is it just the voice you don't like or all the instruments as well? As noted in my review, I found thee delivery of some of the songs a bit slow and ponderous, but there was so much going on with the dobro, accordion and guitar that there was always something worth listening to on every track.

But, if you don't like those rustic/country instruments, you probably aren't going to like this sort of album.
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It is her voice and singing, in large part, for sure. But I could get myself to see past that, if I thought there was more to it. But for me there isn't.

It is not the genre. It is not the pace, it is not the topics, it is not the instruments. It is simply the songs, and as such the album. I have tried, I have read and then tried again. I can't see/hear anything in it. It happens.

Not my intention to keep on about it btw, clearly a fair few have liked it, and a lot. Only really responding because you asked.
 
Hats off to @bennyboy for a marvellous pick. Rob and Foggy have both posted terrific reviews that say everything I think about this album. I loved everything about it. I mentioned on first listen that it didn’t match a couple of Emmylou albums. It doesn’t. It’s better. I get the Sheryl Crow comparisons but to me the songs have more interest, the arrangements much more varied and her voice better, truer, deeper.
I will file this in my favourite folk/country/Americans albums.

9/10
 
First off, I quite like this style of album. If done right country can be quite appealing.
I played it the requisite three times and was preparing myself to write a glowing review. Having read Rob and Foggy’s I’m glad I waited. Very eloquently put and as glowing a report card as you can get.

I’ve played it a fair few times since and here’s the thing. I am still enjoying it. It fits the more mellow mood I’m in these days. That probably helps. But….
I find myself agreeing with some of the more critical reviews of Bill and particularly Coatigan. I have found my interest waining at times and it is concerning her voice. I think she has a very good vocals that can cover a lot of different emotional musical types but there are patches in this album where she just sounds the same over consecutive songs.
Each song individually is pretty good. Vocal diversity somewhere in the middle of the album is lacking though. Her voice is hard to describe. In a different genre but at times she reminded me of Rickie Lee Jones, where I really love it in some songs but could understand people getting fed up with it.

I still think Let it Go and Joy are the two that stand out as different for me.

I think your musical taste is your own and if country isn’t your thing I can see that and I’m quite frequently there myself with the genre, but I haven’t given a score as low as 2 or 3 for any album nominated myself, as far as I can remember and don’t really get how this album can be given a 2 either.
Similarly I don’t see this as a 10 or a 9 either. There are flaws that are evident depending on your taste.

I’m going with a solid 7 and thanks for picking it bennyboy.
 
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