Bon Bon Lifestyle

Josephine Wiggs Experience, Josephine Wiggs | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 29, 1996)
• Original Release Date: October 29, 1996
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Grand Royal Records
• ASIN: B000001X34
• Also Available in: Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #338,686 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. (Make Me Feel Like) Doris Day

2. Head To Toe

3. Downward Facing Dog

4. Arizona

5. Like A Cool Breeze

6. Trieste

7. Going Home

8. Vivi's Fugue

9. Mr B Goes Surfing

10. 'Til I Die

11. Upward Facing Dog

12. Trieste Reprise

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars like a cool breeze on a still day, November 9, 2003

By 

frieda van de voorde (brasschaat, antwerpen Belgium) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bon Bon Lifestyle (Audio CD)

I just delved up this cd from the bottom of my collection, It really brings back memories. Try and look for it somewhere it's a great album.

5.0 out of 5 stars One of my favorite albums, May 12, 2006

By 

apples - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bon Bon Lifestyle (Audio CD)

I've owned this one for years and it's still one of my favorites. A great mellow album you shouldn't pass up.

4.0 out of 5 stars Wig out, December 20, 2004

By 

E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Bon Bon Lifestyle (Audio CD)

This ain't the Breeders. While Josephine Wiggs was once the bassist in that band, her sound in her first (and only) solo album is very different -- mellower, more languid and liquid. Her collection of murky pop, "Bon Bon Lifestyle," only makes you regret that she didn't do more.

It opens with the strummy, gentle "Make Me Feel Like Doris Day," and is followed by a collection of odd ends and bits: the jazzy piano of "Downward Facing Dog," angular percussion rock, ethereal pop music, ominous instrumentals, and even an electric organ overlaid over a basic piano-pop melody.

Even when it's rockin' out, the Josephine Wiggs Experience never seems to move too fast -- it's always a bit downtempo, mellow and sleepy. It may take a few listens to grow on you, but then Wiggs's subtle music and equally subtle singing start to really sink in.

Speaking of sinking in, Wigg's vocals are sunk in pretty far; her voice is fairly good, but often it is reduced to a murmur and sunk deep into the music. Her songwriting is the one weak link. It's not so much bad as... well, simplistic. Taken all together, they seem to paint a portrait of heat, cowboys and dusty roads.

But the music itself is pretty strong -- Wiggs plays bass, drums and guitar, doing an excellent job with each. And Jon Mattock provides even more musical diversity, with some truly outstanding keyboards and bongos. These instruments manage to weave together into slow, melodious, somewhat murky music, only broken by the occasional bursts of sharper percussion.

The Josephine Wiggs Experience only produced one album, but at least "Bon Bon Lifestyle" was a good one. Definitely worth getting -- just don't expect a carbon copy of the Breeders.