Search - Graham Parker :: 12 Haunted Episodes

12 Haunted Episodes is yet another good album for Graham Parker, full of some of the best rock-singing this side of Van Morrison, and full of songwriting that never tires of wrestling with contradictions. The paradox that obsesses Parker this time out: How can he be an angry iconoclast and a happily married husband at the same time? On 12 Haunted Episodes, he integrates the two themes into songs which explore the interface between public discontent and private solace. On "Partner for Life," for example, he pledges fidelity to his wife with a raspy ferocity as if battling off all the distractions and temptations of the world at large. "Next Phase" is a lovely soul ballad that describes how a spouse's love can help one through the trials of the workday. Other songs, such as "Force of Nature," "Loverman," and "Pollinate," introduce a rock & roll lust into the context of marriage. Another song, "Disney's America," turns the recent battle over a theme park in Manassas into a fable of lost innocence. Parker is a marvelous singer and songwriter, but he's not the world's best producer. His unimaginative pub-rock arrangements and his bland, dull sound don't do his songs and performances justice. --Geoffrey Himes