Search - Sheryl Crow :: Detours

Crow Takes Sidetrips On the Road of Life

Rudy Palma | NJ | 02/06/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"If 2002's sun-drenched "Come On, Come On" found a nail-biting Sheryl Crow unsure of her position as pop tunesmith or serious singer/songwriter, 2005's "Wildflower" - her "art" record as she dubbed it - certified she could straddle the line without compromise.



She continues that progression with the aptly-titled "Detours," sifting through a myriad of topics like her breast cancer battle, broken engagement to Lance Armstrong and adoption of a baby boy. She may have been sidetracked, but she embraces the rhythm of life, an artist true to form.



Crow reunites with Bill Bottrell, producer of her 1993 debut "Tuesday Night Music Club," and the results are compelling and thoroughly listenable. Lo-fi opener "God Bless This Mess" is wall-to-wall Crow, reiterating the song's title line despite hazy post 9/11 life, while the jaunty radio-ready rock of the futuristic blue-collar anthem "Gasoline" and bouncy single "Love Is Free" keep the pace.



She bares her soul on "Make It Go Away (Radiation Song)" and delivers a high-octane rocker in the politically conscious "Shine Over Babylon," but the revelatory title track and cheery, swashbuckling "Out of Our Heads" keep the colors from running too dark.



In spite of life's hardships she finds comfort in "Peace Be Upon Us" and the gorgeous "Love Is All There Is" without a trace of sap left on her fingers, while perfect closer "Lullaby For Wyatt" finds Crow fully aware of the trials of motherhood as she tenderly croons "you're mine...for a time."



Crow is a rare flower of a talent in an entertainment industry full of weeds and flash-in-the-pans, but she is not fragile. Transforming the personal into the universal, she has the rare power to make listeners consider not just themselves but the ambiguous world they live in and keep things entertaining and fresh all the while."

It's Always Tuesday Night Somewhere

J. Chasin | NYC, NY | 02/10/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"In late 1993 I went to see the BoDeans at New York's Irving Plaza. The opening act was a singer-songwriter I'd never heard of before, a tall skinny pretty brunette who wore a denim shirt and played rhythm guitar in front of a loose, easy band. I enjoyed Sheryl Crow's opening set so much that night that I went out the next day and bought her record that had just come out, Tuesday Night Music Club (to place this in context, "All I Wanna Do" was all over the radio the following summer.)



She was great, an artist fully formed, and Tuesday Night Music Club is one of those records that manages to capture magic like lightning in a bottle. As much as I like her, it remains her best record.



The Music Club scattered, Sheryl has gone on to have an impressive run of hits (especially in this day and age, when old fashioned Stones/Clapton/Neil Young, 70s-inspired rock'n'roll has fallen so far from fashion. But here, she reunites with Music Clubber Bill Bottrell, who produced, mixed, and engineered, and shares writing credits on 5 of the songs. But let's not get crazy parsing out who does what; Detours has the loose, easy vibe that TNMC had, the feel of music made without any sweat, just flowing naturally. I don't know if there are any hits here and I don't really care. Start to finish, it is her best, most cohesive, easiest-to-listen-to record since the first one.



One thing worth noting is that it sounds great. I liked her last one, Wild Flowers, but the production was a little off for my ears, a little muddled. This sounds clear and bright.



I'm going to guess that some people will criticize the lyrics on some songs; "Gasoline," for example, gets a little political. But not to worry; just do what I do, and don't pay too much attention to the lyrics. Just feel the music, hear the songs, let it seep in and win you over. This one is just spot on."

Amazing~~~

tak1 | 02/07/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I have to say that I was a bit hesitant to buy Sheryl Crow's new record at first because I just wasn't feeling her last 2 records to be honest. Too sunshiney for me. But before those, I've always enjoyed her music on and off.

I saw Detours for the sale price of $8 and thought the titles of the songs looked interesting. So I bought it. Plus I heard she's been having some major issues in her life lately and I basically had the impression that she'd talk about all that in her new record. She did and I'm glad for that. I'm glad she dove deep! This is a personal political record and those can be tricky. They can either succeed or fail miserably. I believe Sheryl has succeeded with Detours.

It's a mixture of her old self a la Tuesday Night Music Club with a newer self in a way with a more intimate touch.

Highlights of the record for me are: God bless this mess, shine over babylon, Gasoline, make it go away (radiation song), and Diamond ring.



Worth checking out! She's the female Bob Dylan of our times."