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- The Sons of Intemperance Offering (1996)
- Big Slow Mover (2000)
The Sons of Intemperance Offering (1996)
7
House of Lust / Running Halfway Blown / Stages / Solana Beach Song / Hats Off (to the Big Queen City) / All the Way My Lover Leads / Soldiers / The Loneliest Girl in the World / Straight to Hell / A Soft Reply / Scream at the Blackbirds / Tighten Up / Simpatico Blvd. / Unmarried Ladies
It
took me quite a while to get my hands on Cody's debut album, the nearly unpronounceable
The Sons of Intemperance Offering, but is was worth it, as these recordings
that were put to tape five years before the music that ended up on Big
Slow Mover show that he was a fully-fledged artist from the very beginning.
The album doesn't display the admirable diversity of the sophomore album (well,
that one wasn't an all-over-the-place release either, but it offered a lot
for a roots-based album), but there's as good as no filler here, as
all songs are crafted and executed with meticulous care and dressed up with
ornate arrangements, featuring piano, B-3, mandolin, banjo and accordion on
top of the traditional instruments. Several of the musicians here (Wallflower
Rami Jaffee, guitarist Bill Bonk, bassist Roger Len Smith, banjo/mandolin/guitar-man
Matt Cartsonis, etc) are also songwriters and/or solo performers in their
own free time and perhaps that explains why most of the songs seem so filled
with details. Despite this potential threat of cramming too many ideas
into the respective songs - a premise that doesn't seem far-fetched if you
take Cody's wordy style into account - the songs themselves are always digestible,
but it's the album length that ultimately becomes the album's biggest problem:
whereas the first album half contains mainly brief and concise roots-pop songs
and hops from the bouncing "House of Lust" to the instantly memorable melancholy
of "Solana Beach Song" (the best cut here) and the shanty-like "Hats Off (to
the Big Queen City)," the second half repeatedly starts to drag with five
songs stretching beyond the five minute-mark and "Simpatico Blvd." going beyond
nine minutes. All of this wouldn't have been a problem in the context of a
9-song album, but by the time you reach these songs and already digested an
hour's worth of ideas, you'll be gasping for air. Because all these songs
are so filled with music and all kinds of extravagant imagery (especially
check out "Scream at the Blackbirds" and "Unmarried Ladies"), it's probably
unavoidable to overlook quite some of the beauty the album contains. Therefore,
and depending on one's endurance, maybe the album would better be enjoyed
in small bits, or one half at a time. Luckily, it was only a rookie's overreaching
hubris (and to think they'd recorded about 30 songs during these sessions)
and a "mistake" (or something the album doesn't really benefit from) that
would be rectified with the more balanced Big Slow Mover, which should
be sought out before this worthwhile, yet too demanding debut album.
Big Slow Mover (2000)
8.5
City of Destruction / Big Slow Mover / Opposition Radio / Run Out of Town / We Could’ve Had It All / 40 Winks of Sleep / Standing Invitation / If I Needed You / Joyride / Spencer’s Song / Orphan Train / Wicked Cold Waltz / Option Anxiety
If
it weren’t for that rare 1996 album The Sons of Intemperance Offering,
I’d start off saying that Cody is one of the brightest new Americana
stars of the current decade, now he’ll have to do with being a terrific
songsmith (and if anyone has the debut and wants to get rid of it –
let me know). Anyway, Big Slow Mover was released to quite some acclaim
nearly four years ago and it’s easy to understand why. Even though the
album has “roots music” all over it, Cody’s one of those
artists – like Tom Petty, Steve Earle, Chuck Prophet – who never
lose touch with rock ‘n’ roll. Though introvert folk and traditional
country are used as foundations, there’s a layer of indie rock
and lo-fi (funky beats and loops on a roots album?)
that sets him apart from the Americana-pack. On top of that, there are two
more aspects about his music that make him really interesting, the first being
that’s he’s a great lyricist (just check out the great wordplay
and imagery of “Run of This Town” and several other tracks) able
of combining Springsteen’s narrative talent with John Prine’s
humoresque angles; the second his knack for writing first-rate melodies. That’s
exactly where all too many roots albums fail: because of their limited
instrumentation and pace (acoustic ballads being the dominant outlet), too
many folk and country singers deliver albums that are simply too monotonous
when digested in one time. Cody, on the other hand, succeeds in creating separate
songs, with nice, recognizable melodies and surprising hooks and atmospheres.
Out of the ten songs the album originally contained (the later release that I have treats the three bonus tracks as regular album tracks), six could qualify as calm ballads, but the album’s unique appeal perhaps even lies more in the other tracks. Album opener “City of Destruction,” for instance, is breezy roots-pop of the highest order, something that could’ve been written by someone like Chuck Prophet or Springsteen on a cheerful day. “Joyful” is equally refreshing, a short and bouncy rootsified pop song that demands to end up on The Car Mix. More unexpected, “Standing Invitation” can only be described as radio-friendly funk-pop. Stuff like this could’ve ruined an album in the hands of a bad producer, but Rami Jaffee (The Wallflowers) has given it a light, sympathetic sheen that’s just about perfect. It also ensures that the fine ballads can appeal to both fans of rusty Americana and indie pop lovers. “Big Slow Mover” is an impressive business card (“I’m a big slow mover, I’m a fogbound troubleshooter, a man out of style”), “40 Winks of Sleep” a yearning story that recalls the best Vic Chesnutt (there’s the vocal resemblance, of course) and “We Could’ve Had It All” a delicious songs featuring tasteful strings. Towards the end (where the former bonus track are crammed together), the album gets slightly weaker (that’s “less strong” in this case), but in the meantime you’ve had enough tracks that deserve lots and lots of replays, such as the entrancing “Opposition Radio,” with it’s muted beats and loops and an impressive, graceful interpretation of Townes Van Zandt’s classic “If I Needed You,” on which he’s aided by Emmylou Harris. This album has plenty of those moments that make you raise your head and realize what a damn fine album it is, but I suggest you check it out for yourself. Big Slow Mover is highly recommended for those who like the literate, reflective and diverse take on roots by people like Joe Henry (who contributes backing vocals on one song), Peter Case and Freedy Johnston.