| |
$11.99 CD
$14.99 Deluxe CDx2
$24.99 LP
$9.99 MP3
|
|
CAT POWER
Jukebox
(Matador)
 "New York"
"Lost Someone"
It ain't rare these days to attend a sold-out show at Town Hall headlined by this Georgia-born singer-songwriter and bear witness to obnoxious audience members' cries of "Cat, Cat!" However, since her infamous early performances of the '90s, it has been evident that Chan Marshall has never purported to be the "be-all, end-all" of music, unlike so many of her single-named contemporaries.
Instead, on Jukebox, her second album composed primarily of covers,
Marshall eagerly pays tribute to some of the Western world's most cherished singers, including Joni Mitchell, Billie Holiday, Frank Sinatra, Bob Dylan, Hank Williams, and Janis Joplin. In contrast to 2000's The Covers Record, a strictly solo effort in which she accompanied herself only with piano or guitar, these 10 renditions follow the fleshed-out, deluxe production aesthetic of the artist's previous studio release, The Greatest. This time around, however,
Marshall has hand-picked a group of musicians fittingly dubbed the "Dirty Delta Blues," with members representing bands such as Dirty Three, Delta 72, and the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion.
Many of the songs on Jukebox flow seamlessly into each other -- an attribute once hailed as one of the most experimental and disorienting aspects of Marshall's captivating, stripped down live performances -- except here, with rare exceptions, the album sounds polished, celebratory, and truly veteran.
Arguably the most powerful demonstration of Marshall's interpretive skills comes on her low, smoky-voiced rendition of "Silver Stallion," written by Lee Clayton and popularized over a decade later as the first single of all-star group the Highwaymen (Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, and Kris Kristofferson). Marshall's desolate, wistful reworking of this jangly country rock ballad will satisfy early fans of her soulful solo endeavors; her sparse approach and confidential tone elevates the minor '90s hit to folky timelessness.
Also formidable is Marshall's reworking of "Metal Heart," one of two original songs planted on Jukebox. Ten years after its recorded debut on Moon Pix, her sophomore release for Matador, Marshall has uprooted the song, with its improvisational, bluesy electric guitar, and resurrected it against bolder, more mature piano chords. Even with collaborative additions, Marshall remains at the helm, wringing out a version that is darker than ever and culminates in an emotionally transparent, show-stopping conclusion. "Metal Heart" indicates that Marshall is at last capable of commanding, and rightfully upstaging, a full band.
For a limited time, both CD and vinyl versions of Jukebox will include a five-song bonus disc of covers by Patsy Cline, Moby Grape, Nick Cave, Roberta Flack, and the Hot Boys. [KS] |
|
