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Strong song selections boost Kinks tribute ROSS RAIHALA Originally published Nov. 23, 2001
Olympia's own C Average opens the newly released "Give the People What We Want: The Songs of the Kinks," a 19-track tribute album devoted entirely to the songs of Ray and Dave Davies.
Tribute albums are typically a mixed bag, and this one is no different -- although, luckily, its hits outweigh its misses. That's due in part to the Kinks songs the 19 acts chose to cover.
Beyond a goofy, throwaway take of the 1983 single "Come Dancing" by Seattle's the Briefs, most of the bands chose more obscure selections from the Kinks' catalog. So instead of new versions of familiar tracks such as "You Really Got Me," "All Day and All of the Night" and "Lola," we get "This Man He Weeps Tonight," "Act Nice and Gentle" and "Brainwashed."
C Average, for instance, contribute a crunchy take on "Revenge," an instrumental that appeared on the Kinks' first British album. Elsewhere, Seattle chanteuse Heather Duby makes "The Way Love Used to Be" (from the Kinks' 1971 "Percy" soundtrack) her very own.
Also of note:
- Mudhoney comes back from the dead, sort of, to cover "Who Will Be the Next in Line" with Steel Wool's Steve Dukich temporarily filling in for Matt Lukin.
- Screaming Trees leader Mark Lanegan gives "Nothin' in the World Can Stop Me Worryin' 'Bout the Girl" (which popped up in the brilliant film "Rushmore") his patented dirge-like treatment.
- Seattle's Nikol Kollars recasts "I Go to Sleep" (a song popularized by the Pretenders) as a slow-burning, Sade-like slice of R&B.
- Former Olympia resident Sam Jayne's Love as Laughter tackles the psychedelic "Tin Soldier Man," complete with a trumpet solo opening performed by Jayne himself.
- Appropriately enough, the hard-drinking Murder City Devils turn in a magnificently shouty version of "Alcohol."
"Give the People What We Want" is a joint release by three Seattle labels, Burn Burn Burn, Right Now Records and Sub Pop, the latter of which was responsible for last year's excellent Bruce Springsteen tribute "Badlands."
Holiday Heart
After an extended break from the band name that made them famous, Seattle's Ann and Nancy Wilson have taken the Heart moniker out of retirement.
"Heart Presents a Lovemongers' Christmas" is the first new Heart release since 1993's "Desire Walks On."
Actually, the album is a repackaged version of a record the duo first released independently in 1998 as the Lovemongers.
But it's the first step toward a full-on comeback for the Wilson sisters, who are working on a new studio record.
Heart emerged in the '70s with a clutch of now-classics that sounded like a female version of Led Zeppelin. Then, unfortunately, they scored a series of light-metal hits at the end of the '80s and early '90s.
The Wilson sisters spent the latter half of the '90s recording as the much more low-key Lovemongers.
Nancy Wilson scored several films for her husband, director Cameron Crowe, while Ann Wilson acted in "The Vagina Monologues" among other projects.
While the Wilsons say the upcoming Heart album will be more in the vein of their '70s rock days, "Heart Presents a Lovemongers' Christmas" is nothing of the sort. It's a subdued collection of holiday-themed music that wouldn't sound terribly out of place in a gift store that sells dried, scented flowers and lots of things tied in raffia.
No word yet on a date or record label for Heart's impending rock record, but the Christmas disc was released by Beyond Music, home to fellow comeback queens such as Blondie and the Go-Go's.
The Stripes' big deal
After turning down multimillion-dollar offers from just about every major label, the White Stripes have signed a deal with V2 Records.
The contract, reported last week in the Los Angeles Times, seemed almost inevitable given the intense interest in the band, a Detroit-based duo who have thus far released a trio of excellent discs for the California-based independent label Sympathy for the Record Industry.
While no dollar amount was given, rival labels reported it to be as high as $1.5 million (the same figure bandied about for the White Stripes' recent European deal with England's XL Recordings). It also gives the White Stripes a remarkable deal of freedom.
The band will retain ownership of its master tapes for the contract, which is only binding for two records -- perks that are almost unheard of for most major-label deals.
The White Stripes also will have the opportunity to sign other bands to V2, an arrangement similar to the one Geffen gave Sonic Youth more than a decade ago -- which, in turn, led to Nirvana's major-label deal.
While some indie fans will likely be upset by the White Stripes' defection to the big leagues, V2 does at least seem more artist-friendly than others of its ilk. Its impressive roster of artists includes Grandaddy, Mercury Rev, Underworld and Moby.
As for the White Stripes, they're currently touring England where they've been blessed (or should that be cursed?) by press attention even more rabid than the praise they've received here.
The band, who played a memorable show in Olympia back in July, plans to work on a new album in the spring.
Ross Raihala covers music for The Olympian. Send news and Top 10 lists to OlyRoss@aol.com. The Olympian Copyright 2001 |
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