False alarm
Patrik Lemberg | Tammisaari Finland | 08/25/2005
(2 out of 5 stars)
"I don't know why I was under the impression that "Mama Kangaroos" was a choir and that "Philly Women Sing Captain Beefheart" would be a cappella... anyway - that is 0% the case.
I was terrified when I started listening to this disc because having listened through all of Captain Beefheart's discography hundreds of times, having read positive reviews of this album, and having appreciated other tributes like "Fast 'N' Bulbous" and the reunited Magic Band, I expected something quite different.
The first three tracks are driven by programmed drums. Credits are given for "remix," "drum machines" and "beats & programming." I'd expected something much rawer and something performed more in the spirit of Captain Beefheart's voice and/or rhythmic approach.
After the exhausting experience of having listened through the first three tracks, a little sunshine shined through the dark clouds; "Run Paint Run Run" at least had "real" instruments - not just keyboards and drum machines, but the lead vocalist didn't at all capture any essence of Beefheart's voice or timing, and occasionally, perhaps due to a lack of interest in the genius of the composer, lyrics are wrong.
"Abba Zaba" by "Voices of Africa" got me a bit more interested in the recording though. Now it finally started to sound like Don Van Vliet's music. A group of five female voices accompanied by sitar, mandolin and African percussion gave the song a nice flavor.
But the song ended and the clouds blocked out the light; "Sugar Bowl," which originally was a tune from the "Tragic Band" era, has been given a redneck-hippie feel. It's performed on banjo, fiddle and upright bass, and while the idea of such a line-up may sound interesting to some, don't bother to get your hopes up, 'less y'all be heavily into bluegrass.
There's nothing special about the performances on "Her Eyes Are a Blue Million Miles," "My Head is My Only House Unless It Rains" or "Crazy Little Thing" either - unfortunately they're just a bunch of mainstream performances that are far from the level of performance of the original recordings. For some reason "My Head" has also been given a Texas-feel by lap steel and violin.
Then comes the real tragedy - something that probably would offend Don Van Vliet if he ever heard it - "Lick My Decals Off Baby..." The song has been raped and abused by the group "Kiss Kiss Kill." Not one note of the original music is played by the barely mediocre trio of guitar, bass and drums that performs the song. The music reflects in no way upon the Captain Beefheart tune "Lick My Decals Off Baby." The only similar element is the words, but that's all - the melody is also new, and it really sounds like a cheap parody... and the show goes on that way; the subsequent tracks have also been heavily modified up until "When I See Mommy I Feel Like a Mummy," which instrumentally would be recognizable as the tune it's supposed to sound like, but it's not a very interesting listen throughout - it runs for 8 minutes and 50 seconds.
"I'm Glad" was, of course, no typical Magic Band tune, but it has been further transformed into a pathetic run-of-the-mill tune that you wouldn't be surprised hearing on some light AOR station.
"Ashtray Heart" is performed by an all-female rock group, which you can't help being reminded of the Courtney Love group "Hole" by. It sounds like the tune had been recorded in a huge hall before sound check, and the extremely punked up version of "Frying Pan" is not much different - I didn't know whether to laugh or cry when I heard it...so I did neither.
"Plastic Factory" does not remind of the music of the original recording, "Orange Claw Hammer" is another "yee-haw" hillbilly tune...not worth comments...and "Well" has been given an ugly mess of reed instruments, guitar, percussion and samples, though originally recorded a cappella.
I don't know if so much of the music has been rewritten both instrumentally and vocally due to a low production budget (not enough money to buy rights,) or if this actually is the idea of a homage to Don Van Vliet by a group of people as big as the group of people involved in this project, but I'd be surprised if this album, in less than 9/10 cases, is not a huge disappointment to real Captain Beefheart fans (who might have expected reflections of his genius.) People who enjoy listening to pop-radio and/or are fans of some of these bands might enjoy these takes on these Beefheart tunes, but it is nevertheless scary to think that this album might be somebody's introduction to his music.
What is the point in trying to make his music more accessible by forcing it to sound commercial, when what Van Vliet wanted to do was to break up the catatonic state?
I understand of course, that this is not an attempt to copy his musical personality, but in order to celebrate it or make a homage to a living genius, this is not the way to go.
Though wry and awkward (with the exception of the only real high-light, "Abba Zaba,") you have to respect someone wanting to acknowledge people about Don Van Vliet's music and trying to keep it alive, so 2/5 stars is pretty fair for this album."
A tribute album, yet much more
R. Garella | Philadelphia, USA | 06/19/2005
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Mama Kangaroo's is no collection of basement tapes, but a very smoothly produced set of fully realized tracks. A well-thought out selection of Beefheart songs, performed with skill and commitment by a grab-bag of female (well, mostly, sort of) artists from Philadelphia's often underrated music scene.
In style, they range from folk to funk to straight blues, to the spooky spoken rhythms of Apes-Ma (my first favorite). The best of these covers take Beefheart's songs in new directions, revealing his beautiful songwriting in a way that's more accessible than the originals but takes nothing away from them. There are few weak spots. The songs are respected at the same time that they are used as artistic vehicles for a new generation of artists with their own visions and styles, and that's what makes a tribute album more than a bunch of covers.
This is an excellent collection that only fails to get a full five-star rating because it is, after all, a collection and not a single conceptual whole by one artist. Highly recommended for Beefheart aficionados and novices alike."
A simple yet inspired concept
dj fern | Bristol, U.K. | 08/09/2005
(4 out of 5 stars)
"To the diehard Beefheart fan it would be easy to dismiss this set as travesty and pure novelty, however this misses the point. Most of the reworkings on this set bring out nuances of the originals that are easily overlooked. For me the delight has been listening back to the originals through the different perspective offered by these 'cover versions'
Inevitably some pieces are less inspired than others, but overall there are enough highlights to please all but the most rabid of Beefheart fanatics
'Plastic Factory' as THE seminal piece of garage rock anyone?"
Track Listings (20) - Disc #1
