Customer Reviews

Merrimack County/Ladies Love Outlaws

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

 

 

These two records were the last of the four albums Tom Rush made for Columbia (the first two being "Tom Rush" & "Wrong End Of The Rainbow", also available as a two-fer from BGO) in the 70's after a multi-album deal with Elektra during the mid to late 60's. As with his earlier work, Rush primarily interprets in his unique style the songs of up and coming songwriters of the day. "Jamaica, Say You Will" (Jackson Browne), "Hobo's Mandolin" (Michael "The Dutchman" Smith), and "Desperados Waiting For The Train" (Guy Clark) get unique Rush treatments, that for a number of us, was the first exposure to these tunes. Having kept up with Tom over the years, he still draws from these albums when he performs, and with good reason. None of these songs have suffered over the years from the "dated" syndrome. Anyone could go into the studio and cut these songs today and they would sound as fresh as if they were brand new songs...but only Tom Rush could do them justice. Happily, at 60, Tom Rush is still out there, doing justice to his songs ("Merrimac County II" and "No Regrets", the latter a re-interpretation of an older version) as well as the work of others. Tom Rush performed many times at the now-defunct Cellar Door in Washington, DC, and I was there almost every time he came to town. I want to be in the audience for as long as he wants to come and play. Don't just buy this release...get 'em all! The man has never made a bad album!

It is an indication both of Tom Rush's enduring appeal as well as of the dearth of comparable contemporary artists that explains the resurgence of these two albums. Some of my favorite Rush classics which were otherwise not available on the CD format are included here, including "Seems The Songs", "Mother Earth", and of course, "Wind On The Water". Given the fact that Rush has never been a terribly prolific songwriter, the fact that these three efforts are now available is something to get excited about.

Most of the songs included here are quite good, and most of the cuts from the "Merrimack County" album are exceptionally good to listen to again. It evokes a sense of the times in which it was recorded, a time when the counterculture was in full bloom, and the typical album addressed itself to a variety of poignant and relevant themes. This is among Tom's most earthy and straightforward efforts.

The "Ladies Love Outlaws" album, on the other hand, plays more deliberately into the quest the Columbia record label was making to make him their next big star, a la james Taylor. They consciously tried to use Rush's "bad boy" image in playing up songs like the title cut, "Maggie", and "Claim On Me" to try to cast Rush as a kind of high-powered folkie heart-throb. It didn't work. Rush was not a hit-machine like James Taylor, and couldn't keep up with the twists and turns the studio types tried to impose to make him a more bankable recording artist. Yet the songs remain for us to enjoy, especially efforts like "Hobo's mandolin", "Desperadoes Waiting For A train", and "Black Magic Gun".

All in all, this is a neat collection that makes some of Tom Rush's otherwise unavailable material accessible again, and I am excited to now have all of these songs at my CD fingertips. Enjoy!

Silly me! Months ago I happened to mention my own frustration concerning the lack of availability of a couple of Tom Rush's early albums on the Columbia label, namely, his "Merrimack County" and "Ladies Love Outlaws' albums, both of which were recorded in the early 1970s. Recently I discovered while surfing on the Tom Rush web site that the two albums in question have now been reissued in a British release covering both efforts in one CD. I am about to order it, but couldn't resist letting you know about it as well.

Some of my favorite Tom Rush recording are here, with "Ladies Love Outlaws", Hobo's mandolin", and "Claim On Me" being among the best on the original "ladies Love Outlaws release. The version of his famous "No Regrets" is not the same as the more famous version which he had a big hit with, and more up-tempo and rock elements than in the original presentation. I also like "Desperadoes Waiting For A Train", "Maggie", and "Black Magic Gun".

Also included from the Merrimack County album is "Kids These Days", Mother Earth", Merrimack County II , and "Jamaica Say You Will", but my favorites here are both "Wind On The Water" and "Seems The Songs. Rush was in terrific form at this point, and his singing and acoustic guitar work on this album was the among the best he ever did, at least in my opinion. Tom's recording career was about to go downhill from this point on, at least for a decade or so, but the songs on these two albums were an indication that his lack of sales was not due to either lack of good material or terrific performances of the material, all of which are very well arranged and orchestrated. This is a lovely re-release and one I am sure you will come to appreciate as much as I do. Enjoy!

THIS IS THE CD I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR. TO ALL NEW LISTENERS OF TOM RUSH, THIS IS SOME OF HIS BEST STUFF. TOM IS A GREAT AMERICAN MUSIC TREASURE.

Tom Rush recordings (all of them) hold a special place in my heart. I love his music and the foresight he had towards up and coming writers. As the discoverer of some of our finest singer/songwriters (Joni Mitchell, James Taylor, Jackson Browne, Guy Clark, Bruce Cockburn and so many more) he deserved so much better than he ever got in the ways of fame and cash. After the demise of the riduculously small selling "Ladies Love Outlaws" he lost his recording contract and disappeared for better than 30 years before recording again. By the way "Trolling For Owls" a live recording of the shows he did in the "Missing Years" and the new "What I Know" are both available at Tomrush.com and worth every penny. He is back, Bold and wonderful. Now, as to these two recordings---Merrimack County is one of his best and that's enough said about it--just listen-you'll know. "Ladies Love Outlaws" has sufferered over the time away as the production job on it was always horrible. They took great tunes and over arranged the heck out of them. The title song is covered by very out of place happy trumpets which almost ruin the song. Rush fought with the record company as hard as he could to release it the way he delivered it to them without "sweetening" then the company blamed him when it didn't sell. Gimme a break. Anyway--listen past the added production garbage and it is easy to discern what he had intended and with the quality of the songwriting and the "basic" arrangements very apparent you can still easily enjoy this one. Not every tune is affected by this production hack job but you'll recognize the ones that are. Getting past that it still deserves 4 stars for what is shoulda, coulda, woulda been without interference. OK---Sheer honesty time--not all cuts are affected by any means. The worst is the title cut where if you listen closely you'll hear the Benny Hill Theme played on the trumpets near the middle of the song. The biggest problem is that this one cut is SO OVERDONE that it takes away from the album as a whole, and it was the first song and the intro to the album----guess that you can tell that this bummed me out then...and now!! However, if you skip this one cut you'll find very little that is a real problem. I mean--heck it IS Tom Rush and the songs themselves are great so........!!! Beyond all else--find his newer recordings and support him in any way you can. He is one of my generations GREATS and at 70 years old now he needs to be thanked for all he has given us all! Besides that--he is still out there doing it and doing it justice-see him while you can!

I HAVE ALWAYS LOVED TOM'S MUSIC AND THESE TWO RECORDS ARE SOME OF HIS BEST. ANY NEW LISTENERS OUT THERE MUST HEAR THIS ONE. HE IS A GREAT AMERICAN TREASURE AND HIS MUSIC SHOULD LIVE FOREVER!!