Search - Dr. John :: Anutha Zone

Ohhhh yeah. This tha TRUE prescription.

Leigh Ann Hussey | SF Bay Area, CA | 03/14/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"From the very first notes, I knew I had something good in my hands. Unlike a previous reviewer, I don't find "the 'gris gris' stuff" old -- but then, I loved "Gris Gris" best of all Dr. John's older albums, and "Back to New Orleans" best of all his later albums, so that ought to give you an idea of where I'm coming from.Like "Gris Gris", "Anutha Zone" partakes of the spiritual and magical in places -- but unlike "Gris Gris", "Anutha Zone" benefits from all of the higher-quality production techniques of thirty years later. You can even hear a little of "Walk on Gilded Splinters" in "John Gris", with the female backup chorus (mostly the London Gospel Community Choir).And while I'm on the subject of backups, let me just mention how ably the good Doctor is supported by his band. Butt-twitchin rhythm provided by the likes of percussionist Sammy Figueroa and a variety of kit drummers, and powerfully sensitive guitar playing by Paul Weller, Bobby Broom and Matt Deighton.And as for the Doctor himself? He's at the top of his form, lyrically and musically (on some of the songs, his wife Cat Yellen shares the lyric credit). My favorite line in the entire album, from the title track:"And the lesson you can never forget / is the lesson you ain't gotten yet."From somber and pensive to greeeezy richness to unabashed party-fonk, that gumbo-spice voice sure is to my taste, and it's never tasted better."

Let it grow a bit

lawdood | Chicago, IL | 01/20/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"At first blush this album may sound overproduced and underwritten - a lot of different sounds (both musical and atmospheric) but not a lot melody or range. But after a few listens, it grows like spanish moss, reaching into little nooks and crannies of your brain and soul. I know this sounds like a cheesy platitude, but there is so much going on in the mix that it is initially very hard to distinguish the melodies and harmonies that are woven together. Had they never sorted themselves out after multiple listenings, I would call this a sonic mush, but after a while, the melodies come to the fore and the layers of the sound can be distinguished and appreciated for their odd hypnotic affect. The only real sonic complaint I have after multiple listens is that bass seems WAY over-pumped.



As for individual tracks, my favorite is I Don't Want to Know, which is really a beautiful and uplifting combination of lyric and music. Soulful Warrior is also a strong musical statement. Sweet Home New Orleans deviates from the rest of the pack in both sound and theme and, while good, doesn't fit the rest of the album. Everything in between is very good to great, with the possible exception of the The Stroke and the chorus in Hello God, which I found somewhat grating, and the end Voices in my Head, which to me remains a sonic mush nothwithstanding the obvious theme.



I urge you to give this a few listens before making up your mind on it - in that way it kind of reminds me of Exile on Main Street - both are dense and murky, but when the lightbulb finally comes on, it shines pretty brightly.



Probably a 4 1/2 star effort, but I'll give him the benefit of the doubt."

Dr. John Reaches Back to Gris-Gris

S. Jones | Chicago, IL United States | 10/31/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Dr. John's makes another attempt to walk on guilded splinters with trippy voodoo-rock cuts that recall his first first CD, Gris-Gris. It's a solid enough effort , but still he can't quite catch fire in a bottle a second time (30 years later). 'Voices In My Head' is as tight as any rock piece out there, but the best cut on the CD is still the funky 'Why Come,' which is the Dr. John of today not the Gris-Gris man of 1968.I like the Doctor in any of his incarnations. I'll give Anutha Zone 4 stars for nostalgia's sake."