Customer Reviews

Man Overboard

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Of course, I'm a fan...but imagine Ian's Mad Shadows work suddenly here and now. The guy was an honest man then, and he bleeds with that honesty--even at 70 years old! "Flowers" is so perfect: a pop song with the pathos of great literature. The album isn't for everyone, but if "you are one of us"--this music will not disappoint. So three in a row: Rant, Shrunken Heads, and Man Overboard. Thanks Ian. Thanks for all the music.

In 2007 Ian Hunter challenged us with ourselves in the rocking and reflective Shrunken Heads. Today Ian is back, upping the ante with Man Overboard -- wrapping his snarling lyrics in the sheep's clothing of a master craftsman at his well-produced best. The contrast of Ian's wit and wisdom, delivered wrapped-up in the comfort of that 20-year-old leather chair from your Sunday room only serves to highlight his message with the impact of a Howitzer. How this guy remains underneath the radar of fame and mass recognition continues to mystify me, just reinforcing my dismay with what sells - and what is dismissed - in a commercial media world.

In the opening "The Great Escape", Hunter tells us the story of an escape from an eminent butt-kicking for some perceived disrespect Ian delivered to "the best left hook in the business". This sets the tone for the album (be alert now) as Hunter highlights society's hair-trigger over innocuous encounters that escalate into violence ("there ain't no rhyme/there ain't no reason,/just people going over the top"). Wrap this up in a smooth tune with the story told with just enough humor from the threatened musician's viewpoint and you start understand -- this guy isn't just another songwriter but a master craftsman with an edge AND a message. Dangerous stuff, this.

To be fair, the 12-song set that comprises Man Overboard misses on a couple tracks -- always a risk when an artist refuses to play it safe -- but the 10 other songs are a tour de force from a relentlessly demanding musician who delivers on all cylinders. The title track "Man Overboard" is a story that slowly reveals that the alcohol soaked derelict constantly "drunk and disorderly" wasn't born into this but sunk there as he was "squeezed `til I came apart at the seams" as he tries to drink away the "anger that's hidden deep inside". "Babylon Blues" takes an unsympathetic look at celebrity meltdowns (ala Lindsey Lohan/ Paris Hilton/ Britney Spears); "Girl From The Office" turns the tables on the young man who actually reaches his goal, only to find that the dating the girl who he helped make the "lust object" has an unsavory down-side. "Arms & Legs" is a energetic and melodic love song, and reminds us of that love we never possessed - or never even knew we were in love with them - but haunts us still the same.

The standout in this collection of standouts may be the song "Flowers" -- a perfectly written song about our long standing human custom of giving flowers, and how we all fail to learn from the events that lead to us giving them. Lovely song, lovely melody, lovely image (flowers) that takes on a new meaning as Hunter croons in a raspy voice "every man killed is an insult to any faith, sometimes flowers ain't enough". Iron fist, velvet glove and the shock of it hitting you right between the eyes as you ask yourself , "my God, what are we doing to ourselves". But that's his point, isn't it?

I'm under no illusion that Hunter will get the credit he deserves for a lifetime of artistry, and a powerful release like Man Overboard will probably be heard by far fewer people that justice would warrant. That said, so what. We know Man Overboard is here, and Ian knows we're here. The message, music and magic are all there for anyone willing to see music as something more than just a beat and hook.

Okay..I'm a tad biased...been listening to Ian since the MTH debut in '69. But the guy has amazing talent ! Some of the smartest lyrics in music , and catchy melodies to boot. Man Overboard has already had 25 spins in my changer , and I imagine it will be there for months to come. Thanks Ian for another GREAT release---see you in Cleveland !

I first thought this was the most consistently somber work Ian has ever done. Musically, lyrically, it was anger, frustration, pain, suffering, fear, doubt, disappointment, heartbreak, really strong stuff and kind of a bummer. I have changed my mind. It's still about all those things but I have come to understand that the real theme is strength and survival. And it isn't a bummer, it's a triumph. Ian isn't a 14-year old pop tart from the Disney assembly line or an adenoidal heartthrob who doesn't need to shave but wants to tell us all about the trials of love and life. For those reasons, this album won't make a commercial ripple. But if you thrive on the real, Ian is the man. "Rant", "Shrunken Heads" and "Man Overboard" are masterpieces and represent some of the best rock/pop music that 99% of the world will never hear. He still tours too and his live act kills. Go Ian.

Odd, - I always thought that 'man overboard' was a Blondie B-side from back in the 70's until i discovered sm*rnoff.......No matter!
SO - the master of the '3 minute opera' (his descriptor of popular songs, i believe) re-visits 'MAD SHADOWS' and delivers an absolutely stunning tour-de-force.
Randy Newman, Gordon Lightfoot, Loudon Wainwright, Neil Young WISH they were capable of songwriting at this level. Even Bobbie Dylan looks back with anguish these days.
Ian, my old mucker, them pipes are getting a bit ragged, but you still sound orlrigght to me! Nice production work too!
In short, if you've ever enjoyed 'pre-dudes' Hoople, or any of Ian's solo work - just two words of advice - GET THIS - cos i know you'll enjoy it!
Peace.

I've been a fan of Ian Hunter since his days fronting Mott The Hoople in the early 1970s so I bought this album as soon as it was released.

On the first play through I thought it was OK, but not up the standard of Ian Hunter's last release, Shrunken Heads.

A few more plays changed my mind about that. This is one of those albums that you have to play a few times to really appreciate.

It's as good as Shrunken Heads. Another solid album from a real pro.

If you don't know who Ian Hunter is, you really owe it to yourself to find out now! Man Overboard, and its predecessor, Shrunken Heads, have to be two of the sharpest and infectious rock n' roll albums in years. After you've listened once, you'll be compelled to go back again and again to the musical skill and verbal fluency that is Hunter. The title song of his latest is really beyond moving; particularly for anyone who feels awash in the skillfully manipulated lock-step that is the new millennium. Hunter presents an uncompromising assault on the indifference of our "flat world." But, if his full-frontal assaults are unequaled (listen to "Babylon Blues" right now!), so too is the simplicity and sweetness of songs like "Arms and Legs." When Hunter sings:

"I'm the one who walked away from love.
Couldn't take that chance.
I don't know what I was thinkin' of...
But if you wanna know what love is...
Oh, if you wanna know what love is...Oh!

These are my arms, these are my legs
These are the thoughts running 'round in my head.
I wanna be where you are
I wanna do what you do, cause
Nothin' really matters but you."

It's a beautiful love song that has the same effect as his most acerbic attacks - making us stop and think about where we are and how we got here after such a long time.

The instrumentation - the music and arrangement - on both albums is creative and, in a word, perfect.

Whether you were a Mott fan (I was, and still have my LP of, "All the Yuung Dudes," purchased the day it was released in the US) or not, you NEED to hear some of the best Rock n' Roll of the last decade. And probably one of the top 10 albums of the year! Now after you've listened to both of these albums several times; I couldn't stop and had to play them over and over, realize that this guy is 70 years old. I'm sure Hunter hates to have this mentioned in reviews, but I find it encouraging and breathtaking that his music has not a hint of (unintentional) nostalgia. He made this 54 year old guy feel like a kid and show again that our future doesn't lie in the past!

I was tempted to give this one four stars simply because it's not quite as good as Shrunken Heads or Rant. But really, why should Ian Hunter be penalized for setting such a high standard for himself? (Like he loses sleep over whether I give his record four or five stars.) This album doesn't have the intensity of Shrunken Heads, but does have a few songs done in a style that Ian rarely attempts. Girl from the Office is a charmer that starts out doing one thing and then shifts gears--then shifts again. Flowers is the centerpiece here, and anyone else would give their proverbial right arm to pen a song this good. But Ian Hunter himself has done a better in the past. This album has a lot more "quiet reflection" than previous ones, but it will still blister the paint off Paramore's tour bus. Get it! Remember, Beethoven's Fourth Symphony isn't as good as his Third, but hell, it's still Beethoven. And Man Overboard is still very much Ian Hunter.

I'm a long time fan of the man and I was looking forward to this album. After a couple of plays, however, I have mixed feelings about it. Hunter was never going to top Rant or Shrunken Heads, both of which are five stars albums. Now, having said that, this is the kind of album that artists half Hunter's age would be pressed to record. It is a good set of songs and there are some powerful tracks here. Stand out tracks for me, at the moment, are 'Arms and Legs', Babylon Blues', 'Flowers', 'Way with Words' and 'River of Tears', and I suspect that with repeated playing it will grow on me. If you're a fan you'll enjoy it, and if you're not maybe you might want to do yourself a favor and check Hunter out. He's one of the most honest song writers in the business.

Ian Hunter is 70 years old now. His voice shows some wear, but his passion remains, and his songwriting is stronger now than in the early years of his solo career. Man Overboard continues a winning streak that began with The Artful Dodger. I am a great fan of this new cd, and I believe it is destined to be one of the truly great rock albums of 2009. Ian Hunter, thanks for keeping the faith.