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When I was a lonely, bewildered college freshman, Jackson Browne's
classic 1974 release Late For The Sky was among the records
I turned to as I searched for meaning in life. I remember posting
the lyrics to "For A Dancer" on my door, using quotes from
Browne's songs in my AOL Instant Messenger away messages, and finding
solace in a music that somehow pacified the yearning in my late-teenage
heart. If this all sounds melodramatic, it's not. The music was that
important to me. One thing I could never have imagined then is that,
in the years following, Browne would find a way to release music even
more powerful than Late For The Sky. He has. Earlier this year,
Browne released Solo Acoustic, Vol. 2 (the first volume was
released in late 2005). And I'm grateful and awed that he was able
to pull himself out of a nearly three-decade run of underachieving
studio albums, loaded with great ideas but undone by overproduction
and arrangements that made often brilliant songs sound mediocre and
at times flat-out embarrassing.
What Browne has done, then, is make a dramatic comeback not through
new material, but by gathering all phases of his career and offering
proof that his songwriting never waned. Both Solo Acoustic
records achieve this, but the second volume manages to do it with
only two 1970s tracks, and none from classic releases Late For
The Sky, The Pretender, and Running On Empty. "Your
Redneck Friend," a novelty country-rock track from 1973's For
Everyman, finds Browne playing the class clown: "He's the
missing link, the kitchen sink / eleven on a scale of ten / Honey,
let me introduce you to my redneck friend." It's hardly the type
of poetry on which his reputation as a lyricist is founded, but it's
catchy, and it's comic relief to offset the seriousness of most of
the record. The other '70s track is the heartfelt, bittersweet "Something
Fine" from Browne's 1972 debut. A testament to what Browne has
accomplished here: I had no idea, until I did a bit of research, that
"Something Fine" was as old a song as it is. If you'd told
me he'd released it six years ago, I would've believed it.
The remaining ten songs offer glimpses of the records Browne recorded
in the ensuing years. All of the performances, including "Your
Redneck Friend" and "Something Fine," are improvements
on the original studio versions, and all of them are enhanced by
Browne's somewhat age-worn vocals, which achieve something truly
rare - rather than simply recalling his earlier days as a singer,
his vocals evoke the emotions of his lyrics with the conviction
and wisdom only experience can bring. The record's stripped-down
approach also directs the focus to Browne's abilities as a musician
- he switches between piano and guitar, and shows restraint and
expressiveness on both instruments.
Every song on this record is a highlight, but among the most powerful
are "In The Shape Of A Heart" (one of the most melodically
and lyrically brilliant songs of Browne's career, from the 1986 album
Lives In The Balance), "Enough Of The Night" (perhaps
the album's most dramatically improved song, rescued from a truly
terrible studio version on 1989's World In Motion), "Sky
Blue And Black" (an graceful ballad from 1993's I'm Alive),
"The Night Inside Me" (a more subdued version of an up-tempo
rocker from 2002's The Naked Ride Home), and "Casino Nation"
(a piece of sharp social commentary from the same 2002 album). In
between these songs, Browne reveals himself as an adept conversationalist,
telling stories, making jokes, bantering with the audience, and taking
requests.
It wouldn't seem right to write a Jackson Browne review without
including a few quotes. All of his records, even at their least
inspired, are showcases for his poetic gifts, so naturally there's
plenty to draw from here. "In The Shape Of A Heart" is
among the best examples: "You try so hard / to keep a life
from coming apart, / and never know what breaches and faults are
concealed / in the shape of a heart." On "The Night Inside
Me," Browne looks back on his past: "I used to lay out
in a field under the Milky Way / with everything that I was feeling
that I could not say, / with every doubt and every sorrow that was
in my way / tearing around inside my head like it was there to stay."
The politically-themed "Casino Nation" offers poetry of
a different sort: "And everywhere, the good prepare for perpetual
war, / and let the weapons shape the plan / the way the hammer shapes
the hand."
For me, a longtime Jackson Browne listener, the brilliance of the
two Solo Acoustic records is a revelation. But if you're not
a Jackson Browne fan, or if you've never explored his work because
you're put off by his more predictable radio hits like "Doctor
My Eyes" and "Running On Empty," please reconsider.
The Solo Acoustic albums are the most impressive releases of
his career. Don't buy a best-of compilation. Don't start with Late
For The Sky, or Running On Empty, or any of the other records
you're likely to see recommended. Start here. And, if you like the
music as much as I think you will, join me in hoping for Solo Acoustic,
Vol. 3.
-Dan Warren
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