Tony Joe White - Uncovered
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Music CD Cover
Artist: Tony Joe WhiteEdition: Music CD
CD Release Date: 2006-09-05
Music Label: Swamp Records
Soundtracks:
- Run For Cover
- Not One Bad Thought (w/ Mark Knopfler)
- Did Somebody Make A Fool Out of You (w/ Eric Clapton)
- Louvelda (w/ JJ Cale)
- Rebellion
- Shakin? The Blues (w/ Waylon Jennings)
- Rainy Night In Georgia
- Baby, Don?t Look Down (w/ Michael McDonald)
- Taking the Midnight Train
- Keeper of the Fire
Free Music Notes for Uncovered
Free Music Review: MIXED FEELINGS ON THIS ONE:
Hit: 5 Stars
I've got mixed feelings about this album. On the one hand, it's got Tony Joe White...and even in '06, The Boy is cooking. And, as another plus, the drum mixes are as crisp as a whip. On the downside, he elected to have outsiders sing and play on some of his cuts...and the only reason I can think of that he did so was to show that, by comparison, he's the Real Deal and they are just wimps.
Don't get me wrong: I'm a big fan of Mark Knopfler's and, even though it has become fashionable to bash Clapton in certain hobbyist guitar forums, I appreciate the greatness he has added to guitar history. Now, J.J. Cale is not someone I have ever warmed up to...and Michael McDonald? Gawd! I can't stand to listen to that whiny, fake, constipated-sounding voice. He sounds like he can't quite decide whether he's an opera-singer or a wannabe "Blue-Eyed Soul" singer. And, sadly, he's neither! But, the scariest part is that he, probably, thinks that he's actually adding something to Tony Joe's track!!! The only song that works pretty well is the one he shares with Waylon Jennings. On this one, they sound like a couple of Horny Old Men having a good time. Cool!
"Not One Bad Thought" with Knopfler isn't bad...but I was disappointed by Knopfler's contributions. On his own, his vox are very Soulful...but they sound weak in comparison to White's. And: I'm used to hearing Knopfler cook on guitar...which, like me, he plays bare-fingered. But here? It sounds like they used a lot of obnoxious stomp-boxes that buried the distinctive Knopfler sound.
And "Did Somebody Make A Fool Out Of You" with Clapton was obnoxious compared to Tony Joe's original version. The mix wasn't very good because there was a lot of self-indulgent "busy-work" between the (too-many) guitar tracks. Clapton certainly plays flawlessly...and his vox are decent. But, when heard in comparison to Tony Joe's, he sounds exactly like what he is: a weak British copy of The Real Deal.
I won't even comment on the Cale track ("Louvelda") except for one word: boring.
"Baby, Don't Look Down" is a really cool tune (as is the first cut...done without outside "help"..."Run For Cover"!) but the worst parts are whenever Michael McDonald "graces" us with his vox. Man, that guy's voice is nothing but irritating and he should probably stick to hanging out in L.A. and not trying to sound Southern...or Soulful. Listen to the difference between Tony Joe's solo vocals and McDonald's: I rest my case! Plus the fact that it didn't sound like they'd rehearsed their parts up very well. When they sing harmonies, their phrasing is downright sloppy...and shameful!
The general arrangements are good...especially the horn-charts...and the back-up vox work very well within the context. I already mentioned that the drum mixes are crisp. Tony Joe's vox could have been brought up a little in the mixes...but, over all...except for the bad choice in collaborations...it was a decent album.
But here's a personal message to Tony Joe:
Hey, man: PLEASE make the rest of your albums without collaborating. You're simply better than that...and you don't need the "famous" names screwing up your good work!
With ALL respect,
Ian Bruce-Douglas
Uncovered Poster
Tony Joe White says he always saw the friends he invited to play on his new album--Eric Clapton, Mark Knopfler, J.J. Cale, Michael McDonald, and the late Waylon Jennings--as "keepers of the fire." They're also premier custodians of loneliness and despair, the two emotions that lie at the heart of this hypnotic submersion into country/swamp blues. From the kickoff track, "Run for Cover," with Wayne Jackson of the Memphis Horns, these meditations on mourning--lost lovers, spiritual struggles, anxiety that knows no name and no bottom--grab the listener fast and pull him down into swirling dark waters. For that reason, there's a numbing sameness--on occasion, two songs back-to-back seem to simply be extensions of each other. But while Jennings's effort is more a portrait of the artist testing his chops after suffering a stroke, other collaborations stick in the mind. The dour Knopfler shows up on the most optimistic song, "Not One Bad Thought," but his vocals still sound like the barely uttered words of a depressive on a bad down. Clapton's voice remains characteristically modest on "Did Somebody Make a Fool Out of You," yet his guitar work--measured and full of emotion--proves what you don't play is as important as what you do. Still, the best pairing is that with Michael McDonald on "Baby, Don't Look Down." When White's smoky rumble meets McDonald's bruised, angelic tenor, you'll know why God made music. --Alanna NashBlues Music CDs
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