Customer Reviews

23rd Street Lullaby

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4 star:		(14)
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1 star:		(3)

 

 

A lot has happened to Patti Scialfa in the 11 years since her debut album - she's had a few kids and gone on two largely successful tours with Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. The world has changed a lot too.

When I first heard Scialfa was coming out with a new album, I was expecting songs that would be about motherhood or current events. I wasn't looking forward to it, because, as a 28-year-old male, I didn't think I'd be able to related to such materaial. But, then, I made the same mistake so many other people have - my expectations were based on her husband's work, where he covered family life on Human Touch and Lucky Town and the outward looking The Ghost of Tom Joad and, more significantly, The Rising.

Instead, Scialfa pulled a George Lucas and gave us the prequel. She takes a look back at the New York City of her younger years - when she was about my age. I'm not sure if I can agree with the hackneyed "It was worth the wait" - 11 years is a long time. Nevertheless, it is a great album and one that I've listened to almost daily since it first came out several months ago.

There are no duds on this album; every song is enjoyable. "You Can't Go Back" is an ironic choice, as going back is exactly what she's going on this album. Not only does "Rose" have a catch beat, but it's near impossible not to have a good mental image of the title character after listening to this song a few times. The softer "Romeo" is one of my other favorites.

The three live tracks on the bonus disc are of a similar high quality. "Spanish Dancer" stands out amongst the others, just as it did on Rumble Doll.

Also - if you can see her in concert, do so!

It seems like several of the best CDs I've heard lately are from people named Patti or Patty -- as in Griffin, Smith and now Scialfa. I think if you asked Ms. Scialfa who her influences are, she would mention her husband foremost among them, as Patti's 2nd album bears some of the same everyday grace and strength as Bruce's. And while her musical style is distinct and all her own (especially the unique vocals), there are frequent echoes of The Boss in her songwriting. To see what I mean, listen to the song "Stumbling to Bethlehem" and imagine Bruce singing it. It'd be a smooth fit.

Patti's new CD isn't making quite as big an impression on me as her solo debut Rumble Doll did, but these new songs (a decade later) have a grown on me after a couple of times through the disc. Nearly every song is a winner. (One exception for me was the Dylan-esque "Each Other's Medicine." It's just too ordinary a tune for my liking.) Otherwise you have such strong tracks as the subtly powerful "Romeo" and the grown-up glories of "Love (Stand Up)."

The backing musicians and production crew for 23rd Street Lullaby are a top-notch bunch that includes Nils Lofgren, Marc Ribot, Will Lee, and many other respected studio veterans. Plus of course Bruce Springsteen joins in, although he didn't play quite as prominent a role this time as on Patti's debut. (This time he only played on 3 songs.)

An album that takes me on a journey and encourages me to contemplate the twists, turns, the ups and downs, and all the different sacred moments that make up an ordinary life. With this album, Patti Scialfa opens up her soul. A reflection on her younger days when she lived in NYC's Chelsea district, each song tells a different story about that period. The album as a whole is a wonderful look at how a PLACE can have such an effect on a person. As Patti sings about the Hudson river, we realize it was just as much a friend to her as Rose, the wise old waitress that taught her how to balance change and serve coffee. As a songwriter, Patti is fantastic. I can listen to this album all the way through without skipping a song. My particular favorites are "State of Grace" and "Stumbling to Bethlehem"--two songs about the search for fulfillment and truth. Patti's voice is raw, emotional, full of wisdom, and wonderfully unique-- a welcome change from the processed and overproduced voices that much of the music industry is marketing today. I love this album, and I'm glad that Patti has utilized her talents instead of just singing back-up for her husband. She is her own woman and her own talent, and that is very evident on 23rd street lullaby.

I purchased this cd in November after being dragged to a recent Springsteen concert by my husband. Oh, I agree with Springsteen's politics and respect the good works he does and enjoy the music he and the E Street band play. I am not, however, a diehard FAN like my husband. Attending the Devils and Dust concert was a life moment for him while I was just happy to dress up in clothes that did not mark me a toddler's mom and go out for drinks after the concert. I was surprised. I loved the concert and was quite moved by his music,lyrics, stories and instrumental talent. So I immediately cranked up the internet to research Springsteen, his past musical works and what might make him tick. And I found Patti. She and their children seem to be a driving force in his life and music. So I checked out her music and what I found was a delicious and sultry voice with its own story to tell. I am no music critic, so all I can say is I love this album. I have a special place in my heart for real women singers who lay it all on the line and refuse to sell out to the popular marketing strategies and machinery of our corporate driven celeb crazed population. And Patti is one of these women. She is a real American woman with real talent and she has a voice I hope to hear telling more stories soon.

I'll make this one short and sweet. For the most part I love
the way she transports you musically and lyrically to another
era full of some really excellent sounds. Shes a great story
teller as well. I can just feel Laura Nyro's soulful spirit riding through these, and of course
Ronnie Spector just spills out here and there. This takes some listens to
flesh out the gems, but much like her last
collection in 93'-RUMBLE DOLL, its so musically adventurous and likeable, a very welcome return to such a talented singer. Although
its been 11 years, her voice hasn't lost anything, its added
much more depth. Much like Rickie Lee Jones,
and Bonnie Raitt she projects a great voice and vision to
her inner city 60's-70's-80's street/soulstyle songs. We need more class in the music business like the
likes of Patti. Highly Recommended!!

This album ranks right up there alongside her first album, Rumble Doll, which has become something of a cult classic and is my all-time favorite. Once again, Patti shows that she is an extremely gifted songwriter. There truly is no one better in my book. My favorites are Romeo, Love Stand Up, Chelsea Avenue, and Young in the City, but like Rumble Doll, there is not a dull song in the bunch. This is an album that can be listened to over and over again, from start to finish, without ever growing tired of it. I don't own many albums that I can say that about. Her voice is unique, maybe not beautiful in the conventional sense, but definitely fits extremely well with her songs. She gets bashed by a lot of Bruce fans for her singing, but don't let that deter you. Just give the music a chance and see if it grows on you like it has for so many of us. It may turn out to be a huge, wonderful surprise. Her music is the very definition of art.

Everyone thinks of Patti Scialfa is Mrs. Bruce Springsteen. This is true, but in her own right, she is a great and talented singer.

Yes, she get more airplay because she is Mrs. Bruce Springsteen, but that does not mean she can't sing, and sing well she does!

This is a beautiful album. The songs are very good, consistent but with enough variation in styles to keep it interesting. The production -- by Steve Jordan (original Letterman drummer who has played with Neil Young and Keith Richards among others -- is top-notch. Her voice reminds me most often of Rickie Lee Jones, but she's got more range and less idiosyncrasy. Bruce and Nils play on it, but it's not real E-sreetish. Marc Ribot is on it too.

I know it's hard to approach this without preconceptions, but trust me this is a quality piece of work, not at all a vanity project. It's stupid that I feel like I have to defend this record. I'm really glad she doesn't let the naysayers bother her. She went all out on this one, and it shows. Give it a chance.

This CD has a way of staying with you, particularly some of the live performances on the included bonus disc. I remembered Patti as Mrs. "The Boss" but she has clearly demonstrated here that she is a talent in her own right. Thanks Patti, I'm looking forward to your next production.

... maybe with a little Roseanne Cash on the side.

"23rd Street Lullaby" shows that Patti Scialfa is a strong writer, an excellent singer, and an artist of the highest caliber.

Like Lou Reed, she writes striking stories of the city - stories that paint vivid pictures and put the listener right in the middle. Like Ronnie Spector, she has a fragile-but-strong girl-group voice that sounds as if its owner has lived every one of those stories.

Each of the songs on this disc not only painted a vivid picture, but also summoned ghosts from my own past... people, places and situations that engendered some of the same feelings Patti expresses. Nearly every song is absolutely capitivating, closer in feel to a Steinbeck short story than to a pop song.

Patti was a songwriter with a career in music long before Bruce came along, and her work should be judged independently of his. Perhaps anyone who has seen more than a half-dozen Bruce shows should disqualify themselves from reviewing Patti's work, or at least remove their BRUUUUUUUUCE! filter before doing so.