By Thomas Conner
© Tulsa World Various Artists " 'Til We Outnumber 'Em" (Righteous Babe Records) This long-delayed recording of an all-star 1996 Woody Guthrie tribute concert at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (which celebrated the opening of the Woody Guthrie Archives) is as uneven, prickly and poignant as Guthrie's own life and legacy. Sketchy performances of brilliant songs, jaw-dropping renderings of mediocre movements, oddly edited bits of readings from Guthrie's writings — "'Til We Outnumber 'Em" is a joyous jumble, a striking collage artwork showing how many colors, styles and genres of music make up the current ideal of Woody's vision. Aside from the jerky sequencing and a few hard travelin' renditions, there are some crystalline moments: Ani DiFranco's spare, sweeping shattering of the preciousness built up around "Do Re Mi," Billy Bragg's rascally cooing through "Against th' Law" (tuneless lyrics to which Bragg wrote new music), Bruce Springsteen — the king of car songs — sputtering and vrooming through "Riding in My Car" and the full-cast, full-on, fully transcendent "Hard Travelin' Hootenanny," featuring everyone from Billy Bragg to Arlo Guthrie. Alternately frustrating and fascinating, just like the man in question. Comments are closed.
|
Thomas Conner
These online "clips" reproduce a self-selection of my journalism (music etc) during the last 20+ years. It's a lotta stuff, but it only scratches the surface. I do not currently possess the time or resources to digitize the whole body of work. These posts are simply a bunch of pretty great days at the office. Archives
May 2014
Categories
All
|