Customer Reviews

Let's Just Be (Dig)

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

 

 

The first four negative reviewers i just dont get! Yes this is not as good as Come to where im from or Redemptions Son but what is! This is an interesting raw and different recording from Joseph Arthur with atleast 5 or 6 excellent songs. This is pretty live sounding with good energy and seems to be a collection influenced heavily by Exile era Stones alittle Bowie some Trex and 70s rock. Theres still a nod to Neil Young and far as im concerned these are all good things. Its nice to hear an unpolished record for once with faults studio chatter and looseness. The slower material is not that different at all from his best if not as layered as it has been in the past. There are certainly moments that might make you cringe but overall its a record that grows on you. Its more rock than previous efforts but still has a large portion of slow raw acoustic stuff that showcases Arthurs voice and songwriting.

Never heard a song I didn't like from this guy. I am a true JA enthusiast. It is a departure from his other work, yea, but that is the genius in him. Just when you think you know him, he changes his colors. Keep it coming!!

i think the album's great if you don't go into it with your own ideas about how it *should* sound based on his previous work... it's most definitely a departure from that. a welcome one, as far as i'm concerned. another nuclear daydream would have been stale.

yeah it's got some weird moments - but diamond ring is one of my favorite songs he's ever done. this album is more about FUN over song structure, which is fine by me. a perfect release in time for a carefree summer.

Brilliant artist (IMHO America's best songwriter) gets own record label;puts out CD 7-8 months after last release;16 tracks, couple just over a minute, one 20 minutes;titles like "Cocktease" & "Cocaine Feet". Insidiousy, the question forms: Could this be a self-indulgent, "experimental","ragged, down-home" collection typical of demo/B-side stuff? The answer is, yeah, pretty much. JA is too much a pro to put out pure drivel & this isn't really an unpleasant listen. Just know what you're getting-if looking for the craft, melody, or melancholy beauty of his last 3 CD's, it ain't here-maybe on his next (also expected out in '07), if this own-label thing hasn't gone to his head

Let me start by saying: I'm a big Joseph Arthur fan. For anyone who is interested in his music- I deplore you- go buy Come to Where I'm From or Our Shadows Will Remain. Those albums are a much better representation of what Joseph Arthur is capable of as a musician- and must haves for any fan.

Now, on to Let's Just Be.

Let's Just Be is Joseph's follow up to last years lukewarm Nuclear Daydream, and his first release on his Lonely Astronaut label. Similar to John Lennon's / Yoko Ono's Wedding Album, Unfinished Music etc. - Let's Just Be seems like an expression of all the crap that the labels wouldn't release on one of his previous releases. Overall, the album has a very Rock N Roll production. Any fans expecting anything similar to his previous releases might as well give in to disappointment immediately.

The opening track, "Diamond Ring" might as well be a discarded AC/DC track. Overly raucous and messy.

Track two, "Good Life" begins with a 60 sec sound collage intro. This track is a little more bearable, with a decent verse / chorus - but ends awkwardly with Joseph piercingly screaming "Rock N ROLL!" into the microphone. Already, less than five minutes into the album- I could tell this was album was packed with nothing more than dissatisfaction. And it gets worse before getting better.

"Spacemen" begins ok, but the ridiculous chorus "Here Come the Spacemen, Outta the Sky!" ruined the track for me.

"Take Me Home" is definitely a little taste of the Joseph Arthur I know. A stripped down, simple track- it fails to reach the beauty / complexity of his best works, but is still a simple little track with a nice sound.

"Chicago" is an alternative track with lots of overdubbed vocals / echoes. It emotes similarly to his work on Redemption Son.

"Cockteeze" is another Rock N Roll track. It has a charm about it- but it's too silly to take seriously. Joseph's voice cracks through the whole track as he reaches too high out of his range. Again- I hear an AC/DC influence here...

I had high hopes for "Lonely Astronaut". It begins as a slow, acoustic, country flavored tune with more "Take Me Home" style lyrics. At around the 8 minute mark, the beat deconstructs - the music becomes noise- and Joseph repeats the word "I" into the microphone every three seconds for the next SEVEN MINUTES. After about SEVEN minutes, he begins repeating the word "LOVE" into the mic instead. This continues for another few minutes before the acoustic guitars come back in for the reprise, ending the track at just over 20 minutes. I am all for avante garde experimentation, but let's either leave it to the artists, forewarn your audience, or wait until you come down off the cocaine before doing so.

And that brings us to, "Cocaine Feet". Another bluesy Rock track- personally, I don't feel it's Joseph's genre- and I would rather hear it from people who do it well. But all in all, it's a decent track that showcases Jennifer Turner's guitar skills. One of the more solid tracks off the album.

The title track, "Let's Just Be", is a clap-a-long with more shrieking Joseph. Nothing special about this one.

"Shake it Off" is one of the worst tracks I have heard in recent memory. Again, I'm all for experimentation. Substances have helped a lot of musicians, but rarely while they are in the studio. Please stop the recording process until you're sober enough to recognize your inability to perform.

"Lack of Vision", Jennifer Turner's "Gimmie Some Company", and "Yer the Reason" are the standout tracks on the album. They sound as if they were recorded live in the studio- and Joseph is definitely outperformed by his band mates. Turner's "Gimmie Some Company" is one of my favorites of this album.

The album closer "Star Song" begins with the band members imitating cat meows.

It's another slower tune, with a Middle Eastern flair to it. It's one of the few incidences on this album where the Lonely Astronauts experimentation actually sees fruition. Well done guys.

All in all, I feel as though Joseph Arthur has lost all artistic credibility. I wish he would have taken the time to either hone these songs, or forewarn his fans that this album was more experimental (i.e. Unfinished Music).

As I said to my fellow Joseph Arthur fans on the day of release, the only talent Joseph exhibits on Let's Just Be is how he can ruin a song in thirty seconds.

Again, if you are interested in Joseph Arthur's music, which I highly recommend, then buy Come to Where I'm From or Our Shadows Will Remain, you will not be disappointed. His (actual) music is truly underappreciated.

...AND IN THE WORLD, considering the fact that entertainment is America's Number One export these days. ;-) After putting out his first five albums, perhaps all destined to be classics, Joe has earned the right to be a little self-indulgent. This CD was going for $16.XX when it was released, and now you can't find it for less than $20.00. Apparently the market agrees.

While "Let's Just Be" is not as painstakingly produced as his other offerings, it is just as musical, moving, and exciting as his other work. This is an artist who excels at writing music that "sounds good." He rarely, if ever, gives himself a break when it comes to practicing his craft. I sense that he searches his talented soul for the "right sound" at every juncture. No cliches here. No music that takes you down a tired, boring road. There is nothing more frustrating for a music lover than listening to formulaic music--the kind so full of overused hooks, for example, that one can anticipate the next few bars and predict their construction on the first listen. Joe excels at creating music that is interesting and exciting, and always new. A pleasant irony given his masterful emulation of great songwriters that have gone before him. He does Neil Young better than Neil Young can, and so on. I get the impression he would not release a "Neil Young-ish" tune if this were not the case.

And so it goes with the creations on this CD--he does Mick Jagger better than Mick Jagger, in my opinion. I think after listening you would agree that he at least takes the material down new and wonderful pathways not considered by the artists that influence him. I think this is because Joe is not really trying to emulate anyone at all. He is most definitely Joseph Arthur, and uniqely so, when it comes to writing and performing his music. What I believe is happening here is something much more profound. This is about a man who is especially gifted in his generation; a man who hears the song first, both lyrics and melody and all else that makes up a song. Then he writes it down. And as any songwriter worth their salt will tell you, skilfully and sensitively hearing the song is the key. Such a songwriter is rare indeed. I believe the music he writes delights and amazes him as well as his fans, in the sense that he might wonder how on earth he was able to give birth to such work.

I am a songwriter myself, and I have been influenced and encouraged in a huge way by this artist. He has motivated me to listen and compose what I hear in the same way. In a frame of total honesty, humility and passion for one's craft. To listen for and create that combination of lyric and melody, over the right rhythm, that is the best possible combination for that particular piece. This is what makes great music.

One last thing. Some argue that Joe's latest rendering here is perhaps too naked, as though it needs to be fully dressed because some of the clothing his music wore on earlier CDs is missing on "Lets Just be." Certainly, the detailed paint strokes we found so beautiful and pleasing before are not present here. But as a well-repected producer wrote in an article I read just yesterday in one of the trade mags, simpler is often better. It is at least just as legitimate if it fits. And when an artist as adept at adding lush details as Joseph Arthur is decides for a certain work to abstain from this, we should assume its because adding more would ruin it. There are few things more difficult than excercising the discipline necessary to say "Enough" when laying down tracks in the studio. Especially these days, when artists, engineers and producers ahve so many tools and fantastic resources at their immediate disposal. I think Joe played it right on "Lets Just Be." Relax and enjoy a true master craftsman's work. Buy the CD before the price goes any higher!

Having bought the three former excellent cd's by JA, this is quite an unpleasant surprise. One hss to wonder why someone with the talent of JA deliberately records absolute rubbish. I will not buy anything from this guy again.

Looks like the Bard from Akron has peaked too early. Has he matched Vacancy or Come to where I'm from? No. He came close on Our Shadows will remain, but no. I saw him live last yeAR--my sixth time seeing him--and it was embarassingly bad.

Is this what happens when you move to Los Angeles? Or when you are more interested in self-reinvention than quality songwriting?

I waited an extra month for this version of the album to come out -- the one that Amazon says has "Extra Tracks". Don't be fooled -- there are no extra tracks on this CD. Thanks Amazon!