Customer Reviews

Burnt Lips

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This one has gotten lots of play during the past 24 years. Kottke (by his own admission uneasy with his voice) frankly never sounded better... singing on most of the tracks here and the songs are extremely well chosen. There is nothing out of his range. This record is markedly different from his Capitol recordings, which is good and bad. Kottke attempted to repeat the same format with his next recording Balance but it wasn't half as good as this effort. The 70's produced most of Kottke's real gems and this one though not generally praised as one of his finest for me holds special memories. It wouldn't be until Great Big Boy that he would put out a consistently good vocal recording.

I suspect most of Kottke's fans are guitar nerds (I don't mean to be rude guys!). I don't even play, but his music is a joy to listen to. I love "Burnt Lips" above all the rest of his stuff I have heard, thanks to the balance between his instrumental bits and pieces, and the brilliant and evocative vocals on covers like Nick Lowe's "Endless Sleep" (it's about time he re-recorded it himself. His version on the Bowi EP is a bit lacklustre in comparison) and originals like "Frank Forgets". It's not fair really - he sings, writes and plays the guitar better than nearly any man on the planet (R. Thompson comes close, but his voice isn't a patch on Leo's), and yet he is still pretty unknown. But at least now people get to hear him on the Uncle Ben's TV ads here in Britain.

I for one have always liked Leo's vocals--more so than John Hiatt's or Tom Waits'--and this album features some of the best vocals in his entire oeuvre(thank you spell check). Favorites of mine include "Endless Sleep", "Cool Water", "Sonora's Death Row", and "Everybody Lies".

I of course am mezmerized by his playing as well, and this album doesn't stint on that, but if you just like the instrumentals, consider instead "Dreams and All That Stuff", or the Capitol best-of instrumental set, which are both solid, or even "One Guitar, No Vocals", a more recent CD that is very good also.

I've read interviews with Leo Kottke, and he's a very funny, articulate, eccentric guy. His liner notes bear this out. He's done some fiction writing, I seem to recall reading, and maybe we'll get to see it someday. And his many albums are all fine examples of a genius who is fully in command, yet seems intent on expressing musicality rather than aren't-I-a-virtuoso flash. And I love his singing. I don't just tolerate it, I think it's a fine, resonant counterpoint to his guitar work. I've always loved this album. You know, Leo played trombone in a high school band performing at the White House for JFK. That's a credential not on Jimi Hendrix's resume. If you have any interest in beautiful guitar playing, check out "Burnt Lips".

By the way, "Music From Terry's Movie" may be one of the least self-aggrandizing song titles ever. One assumes "Terry" is a buddy whose cobbled together some kind of film on the cheap, which Leo was kind enough to score, but the "Terry" in question is Terrence Malick, and the "movie" in question was "Days of Heaven". A major film from thirty-odd years ago.

It's been years since I have heard this recording. I had an old friend of mine who gave me a dusty, vinyl copy of it.By far,the best song on it is the song"Everybody Lies"I love this song.His voice gives me cold chills.A masterpiece.

And that's said tongue-in-cheek: Leo's murky baritone really does have a range that finds itself melodic without being cheesy--and he's really better when he's overdubbing backup vocals ("Cool Water" and "Endless Sleep," which stand out for their sparse arrangements.) His effortless picking that's sprinkled throughout the album is helped by fragile slide notes that really should inspire more guitarists to be sensitive to Leo's dampening technique.

Typical cockeyed Kottke lyrics unhinge the quirky "Frank Forgets," and maybe "Sonora's Death Row" gets graced with the best interpretation in years through Leo's reminiscing about a tragic night on the town. However, Leo's fingertip touch on harmonics is often overlooked--but not to be missed on "Out-takes from Terry's Movie." The rest is the usual wash-rinse-and-repeat of Leo's "let me find a string here and there and abuse it" method, but that's what he does with flair. Go on and enjoy it.

This is one of my Top Ten favorite Recording. "Orange room" Is my Favorite Solo Guitar, and "The Quite Man" is right up there, and I Listen to alot of Solo Guitar. "Voluntary Target" is also a very fine piece. If you like this type of music, this Recording is 1st rate.