Customer Reviews

Master of Disaster

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

John Hiatt's latest release, Master Of Disaster, finds him in a more soulful mood, but still serving up good old Memphis boogie. The songs have a deep introspection and much of the Mr. Hiatt's trademark bite. The title track is a look at addiction in a musician's life. "Thunderbird" is a folsky tribute to his car of the title name, "Wintertime Blues" is a fun, full-tilt boogie shuffle about the ills of cold weather and "Back On The Corner" is a blues lament with a great, grainy vocal. The standout track on the album is the superb "Cold River". The song is built over a soft and pretty acoustic guitar and the song tells the tale of travel through the Midwest. John Hiatt continues to fly under the radar, but do yourself a favor and check out this album and the man's catalog. He is a great songwriter and you will not be disappointed.

One of the things that you can go to the bank on with a John Hiatt disc is that it will be great. It's only a question of how great, and in a career that has had a tremendous amount of high water marks, this is an outstanding CD, possibly his best. All of the songs, from the self-deprecating opening title track through to the end are exceptional, classic, superb in every detail. Whether he's referencing his Welsh roots (what I'd give to see Hiatt and John Tams in concert together!), singing about his Thunderbird or the way a love crosses over a mighty river in a Hoosier take on Orpheus and Eurydice, Hiatt delivers compelling lyrics and driving rhytms in each song. Accompanied by the North Mississippi All Stars, Hiatt has a killer session group to execute these jems. They have an innate sense of where Hiatt is coming from, and play to the finesse of the song. They might be the best collection of musicians working today.
What you notice straight out is the drumming. Hiatt has worked with some of the best (Jim Keltner, for one), but every tune throughout the CD seems to jump at you because of the sophisticated groove laid down. The Dickinson family rose to the challenge in production and execution and whether it is a hard rockin work out or one of Hiatt's classic ballads, every aspect of each song resonates incredibly. This is a band to tour with, and if so, sell your house to get out and see them. Hard to imagine a better CD. When you think about how disappointing or formulaic most established rock acts get by this point in their careers, it is a cold and refreshing blast whenever Hiatt appears. Costello, Jagger, and a whole litany of also rans should take note. Even Neil Young could take a serious woodshedding session with Hiatt to get back to what he does best. And doing what you do best should be dharma enough for anybody. Get this disc. It simply doesn't get any better.

When I first heard that John Hiatt was recording a CD with the North Mississippi All Stars I was taken aback, being a fan a both bands, I thought at first it was a strange pairing. Well, whoever connected these two should be rewarded. Some of the credit must go to producer Jim Dickinson (father of Luther and Cody Dickinson of the NMAS) John Hiatt's songwriting and singing come to the forefront with a powerful but supportive role played by the NMAS. The Rhythyn section is awesome, and Luther Dickinson does a beautiful job of complementing John's songwriting with subtle but inspired guitar playing without overpowering it. In my opinion this is the best CD John Hiatt has recorded in a long time. I enjoyed the last album with the Goners ( Sonny Landreth is amazing) but still felt something was missing with that combo.
John Hiatt has gone back to his roots of writing and singing amazing songs. The back up band reminds me somewhat of the amazing Muscle Shoals house band who supported so many great artists.
This album gets my vote for album of the year.....so far.

Simple sweet poetry as always. Hiatt has never failed to take me away with him. Beautiful sound, that familiar crackly voice and stories that make me wish I could be there. If you like hiatt you know already you won't be disappointed and if you don't, then perhaps you aren't really listening.

Every time an artist of John Hiatt's caliber releases a new album you can be sure that there will be people calling it the greatest thing he (or she) ever made. And there will be others ready to denounce it as the worst thing he (or she) ever made, a sell-out, a lapse into self-parody.

John Hiatt's newest CD is neither. It is a relatively low-key (but not quite mellow) collection of mainly acoustic songs, all of them good, several of them great. It's not another "Bring The Family"...the songs are not as uniformly great, and the mood is much less serious.
But "Master Of Disaster" is definitely one of Hiatt's better records. The first half of the album in particular is excellent; lean, smoky grooves and a couple of songs which must be destined for future Hiatt-compilations, like "Thunderbird" and the title track.
The second half takes a bit more time to assimilate, perhaps, with more introspective and less "radio friendly" songs like "Cold River" and "Find You At Last", but give them a chance and most of them will grow on you.

This is one of the rootsiest items in John Hiatt's catalogue, far removed from 2003's often hard-rocking "Beneath This Gruff Exterior". Hiatt sounds positively light-hearted on the folksy acoustic "Wintertime Blues" and the wry "Old School", but he has also penned a couple of his customary unsentimental love songs, particularly "Love's Not Where We Left It" and "Ain't Never Goin' Back".
There are plenty of hooks and good melodies here, and several up-tempo folk-rockers, but I can see why people who prefer Hiatt's more impulsive rock 'n' roll albums might feel that "Master Of Disaster" is a bit too rootsy for their liking.

Me, I think it's great. Almost great, anyway...maybe "really, really good" would be more accurate. Lyrically it provides a nice middle ground between his more confessional singer-songwriter albums and his radio-friendly rock 'n' roll songs, and the rhythm section is one of the best Hiatt has ever worked with...suitably loose, but never sloppy. And the clear, uncluttered production is terrific.
"Master Of Disaster" is not John Hiatt's best record, but it is much farther away from being his worst.

Man, I'm floored by the poor reviews of this disc. Listen, his mid-career stuff i.e. "Bring the Family", "Stolen Moments" etc. is phenomenal; but he has not lost one bit of touch or creativity with his last couple discs. While "Beneath This Gruff Exterior" was a top shelf punch in the chops from John, "Master" is a laid back and beautifully written piece of work. I'm a HUGE Hiatt fan, and arguabally each of his discs have one or two clunkers- this disc is no exception to that rule. But you also have a few could-be classics- The title track, "Howlin' down the Cumberland", "Find you at Last".... and a couple that are just hysterical- "Wintertime Blues" and "Back on the corner". LOVED IT.

I've been a sometime fan of John Hiatt over the years, having first heard him on Memphis In The Meantime when it was current. Since then, I have picked up the occasional Hiatt album, mostly at the urging of friends who were bigger fans than I. It's not that I didn't like what I heard, its just that I was into so many other types of music that Hiatt remained low on my musical radar until the issue of The Tiki Bar Is Open. With that CD, I started listening more and have become a bonafide fan myself.
When I read that Master of Disaster was a collaboration with the North Mississippi All-Stars, I was intrigued so I bought it. What a masterpiece! I don't understand the reviewer who hates this in comparison with his earlier work. This is surely the best Hiatt I've heard!
Here are my favorites: the plaintive, tuneful title cut; the jaunty Wintertime Blues; the romantic When My Love Crosses Over; the hard-driving quasi-religious Love's Not Where We Thought We Left It; the bleak Cold River; the hard-edged Find You At Last: the emotional Old School; and the down-and-out Back On the Corner.
The collaboration between the North Mississippi All-Stars and John Hiatt is one that should bring them both more fans. The mostly understated music here suits the lyrics and Hiatt's singing style perfectly. They work well together. I am now looking forward to the next Hiatt CD, hopefully featuring these same musicians.
The CD cover is kind of silly, but those who buy it will find a handsome booklet within that contains the lyrics. If you are a John Hiatt fan, go with the majority of the reviewers in this case and get Master of Disaster. You should not be disappointed.

Mr. Hiatt has dug deep in a fertile field of observation and introspection and found there (stumbled on?) the fickle truths of life with honesty and does so (as always) with a sense of humour and humility, and in the process transcends even his own well-renowned art of songcraft. These are songs that are comforting to the soul like an old pair of well-oiled shoes and and feel as if they will do so for years to come. Tunes so simple you'll think you must've heard them before while others bear close listening, striking (profound?) in their simply-stated complexity. From a slow mumble to flat-out rock'n raw emotin', the pace moves on and back again. The many hues of Mr. Hiatt's wonderfully earthy voice are partly obscured by the overly bassy sound of the recording (at least on the regular audio CD version). However, of one thing there is no denying. The singer song-writer and his talents just get better with each passing year.

John Hiatt with the North Mississippi Allstars as the backup....yup, it's as good as it sounds. Great album, very "Hiatt". Similar to Walk On, with a bit more of a 'produced' feel to it. That's what makes this great though, it's definitive Hiatt with just a twist of newness to make it a fresh album.

I have to disagree with the reviewer who said that the storytelling isn't as good as in previous albums. They are more abstract than what I'm used to hearing, but that allows me fit in my own interperetation of the songs, which I love. Best album I've bought in '05...

After navigating the musical landscape with the likes of Sonny Landreth, John Hiatt changes gears slightly with the charming, whimsical, slightly mercurial but constantly delightful Master of Disaster. A combination, and celebration, of the wisdom of age with the raw power of youth, Hiatt has assembled a team that knows about the folk/blues traditions of the past and yet is capable of producing a work that is up there among the best. I personally like the rawness of Beneath This Gruff Exterior and The Tiki Bar is open, but have equally warmed to this more mellow album. No disasters here...just delight.