John Hiatt - Master of Disaster (11 tracks) +Album Reviews

In an amazing career, an OUTSTANDING CD

o dubhthaigh | north rustico, pei, canada | 06/24/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"One of the things that you can go to the bank on with a John Hiatt disc is that it will be great. It's only a question of how great, and in a career that has had a tremendous amount of high water marks, this is an outstanding CD, possibly his best. All of the songs, from the self-deprecating opening title track through to the end are exceptional, classic, superb in every detail. Whether he's referencing his Welsh roots (what I'd give to see Hiatt and John Tams in concert together!), singing about his Thunderbird or the way a love crosses over a mighty river in a Hoosier take on Orpheus and Eurydice, Hiatt delivers compelling lyrics and driving rhytms in each song. Accompanied by the North Mississippi All Stars, Hiatt has a killer session group to execute these jems. They have an innate sense of where Hiatt is coming from, and play to the finesse of the song. They might be the best collection of musicians working today.

What you notice straight out is the drumming. Hiatt has worked with some of the best (Jim Keltner, for one), but every tune throughout the CD seems to jump at you because of the sophisticated groove laid down. The Dickinson family rose to the challenge in production and execution and whether it is a hard rockin work out or one of Hiatt's classic ballads, every aspect of each song resonates incredibly. This is a band to tour with, and if so, sell your house to get out and see them. Hard to imagine a better CD. When you think about how disappointing or formulaic most established rock acts get by this point in their careers, it is a cold and refreshing blast whenever Hiatt appears. Costello, Jagger, and a whole litany of also rans should take note. Even Neil Young could take a serious woodshedding session with Hiatt to get back to what he does best. And doing what you do best should be dharma enough for anybody. Get this disc. It simply doesn't get any better."

Anything But A Disaster

Thomas Magnum | NJ, USA | 06/26/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"John Hiatt's latest release, Master Of Disaster, finds him in a more soulful mood, but still serving up good old Memphis boogie. The songs have a deep introspection and much of the Mr. Hiatt's trademark bite. The title track is a look at addiction in a musician's life. "Thunderbird" is a folsky tribute to his car of the title name, "Wintertime Blues" is a fun, full-tilt boogie shuffle about the ills of cold weather and "Back On The Corner" is a blues lament with a great, grainy vocal. The standout track on the album is the superb "Cold River". The song is built over a soft and pretty acoustic guitar and the song tells the tale of travel through the Midwest. John Hiatt continues to fly under the radar, but do yourself a favor and check out this album and the man's catalog. He is a great songwriter and you will not be disappointed."

WOW!

Robert Dushin | Solon, OH USA | 06/23/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"When I first heard that John Hiatt was recording a CD with the North Mississippi All Stars I was taken aback, being a fan a both bands, I thought at first it was a strange pairing. Well, whoever connected these two should be rewarded. Some of the credit must go to producer Jim Dickinson (father of Luther and Cody Dickinson of the NMAS) John Hiatt's songwriting and singing come to the forefront with a powerful but supportive role played by the NMAS. The Rhythyn section is awesome, and Luther Dickinson does a beautiful job of complementing John's songwriting with subtle but inspired guitar playing without overpowering it. In my opinion this is the best CD John Hiatt has recorded in a long time. I enjoyed the last album with the Goners ( Sonny Landreth is amazing) but still felt something was missing with that combo.

John Hiatt has gone back to his roots of writing and singing amazing songs. The back up band reminds me somewhat of the amazing Muscle Shoals house band who supported so many great artists.

This album gets my vote for album of the year.....so far."

Another round of applause

H. Carey | New york, New york | 06/22/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Simple sweet poetry as always. Hiatt has never failed to take me away with him. Beautiful sound, that familiar crackly voice and stories that make me wish I could be there. If you like hiatt you know already you won't be disappointed and if you don't, then perhaps you aren't really listening."

Enjoyable roots-rock

Docendo Discimus | Vita scholae | 07/10/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Every time an artist of John Hiatt's caliber releases a new album you can be sure that there will be people calling it the greatest thing he (or she) ever made. And there will be others ready to denounce it as the worst thing he (or she) ever made, a sell-out, a lapse into self-parody.

John Hiatt's newest CD is neither. It is a relatively low-key (but not quite mellow) collection of mainly acoustic songs, all of them good, several of them great. It's not another "Bring The Family"...the songs are not as uniformly great, and the mood is much less serious.

But "Master Of Disaster" is definitely one of Hiatt's better records. The first half of the album in particular is excellent; lean, smoky grooves and a couple of songs which must be destined for future Hiatt-compilations, like "Thunderbird" and the title track.

The second half takes a bit more time to assimilate, perhaps, with more introspective and less "radio friendly" songs like "Cold River" and "Find You At Last", but give them a chance and most of them will grow on you.

This is one of the rootsiest items in John Hiatt's catalogue, far removed from 2003's often hard-rocking "Beneath This Gruff Exterior". Hiatt sounds positively light-hearted on the folksy acoustic "Wintertime Blues" and the wry "Old School", but he has also penned a couple of his customary unsentimental love songs, particularly "Love's Not Where We Left It" and "Ain't Never Goin' Back".

There are plenty of hooks and good melodies here, and several up-tempo folk-rockers, but I can see why people who prefer Hiatt's more impulsive rock 'n' roll albums might feel that "Master Of Disaster" is a bit too rootsy for their liking.

Me, I think it's great. Almost great, anyway...maybe "really, really good" would be more accurate. Lyrically it provides a nice middle ground between his more confessional singer-songwriter albums and his radio-friendly rock 'n' roll songs, and the rhythm section is one of the best Hiatt has ever worked with...suitably loose, but never sloppy. And the clear, uncluttered production is terrific.

"Master Of Disaster" is not John Hiatt's best record, but it is much farther away from being his worst."

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