Carly Simon - Another Passenger

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Free Music Notes for Another Passenger

Free Music Review: Carly's "Passenger" is an exhilirating ride
Hit: 5 Stars

The songs on "Passenger" have even more depth and character than her usual fare, if that can even be imagined. The character studies laid over the breezy calypso of "He Likes to Roll" and the saloon jazz of "Riverboat Gambler" are the work of an adept enough writer, but the biting takes on the pretentious heroine of "Dishonest Modesty" are laugh-out-loud clever ("And you can House and Garden/Vogue and Glamour, Mademoiselle/but I know you can Bitch and Screw/and Penthouse just as well"). "Fairweather Father" and "Cow Town" tell tales of modern women in less-than-perfect relationships (the former featuring an underappreciated domestic goddess and the latter featuring a gold-digger whose payoff is lucrative but lonely), and the Elton John-esque "Libby" is a touching ode to a longtime friend and kindred spirit.

However, love pains from a first-person point of view have often been the subject of Simon's best work, and this record is no exception. "Darkness Til Dawn" is a touching account of coping with the end of an affair; when Simon sings "my brain won't stop showin' those old movies of you," the longing and resignation in her voice make for one of her most striking moments. And the lesser-heard masterpiece "In Times When My Head" tells a stingingly sad tale of a woman so confident in her importance to her lover that she has an indiscretion, naturally leading to guilt that breeds insecurity. The chorus features a killer hook, but with lyrics like "although that boy meant nothing to me/I believe I've lost the simple thrill/of the times when my head was together about you," it's pretty clear that this is too deep for your average FM station.

The album's only less-than-necessary experience is the lightweight "One Love Stand," a pop shuffle that's agreeable enough but outclassed by the material that surrounds it. All is forgiven, though, when even the album's sole remake is a strong artistic statement: her slow-burn reading of the Doobie Brothers' "It Keeps You Runnin" is a textbook example of how to give a sultry vocal performance.

Sadly, it's all too often that some of an artist's best work goes unrecognized because it's too sophisticated for the masses. But at least die-hard Carly Simon fans who dig deeper than radio hits can reap the benefits of this hidden treasure.

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