Missing Years

John Prine | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 24, 1991)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Oh Boy
• ASIN: B0000005XY
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #51,775 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #70 in Music > Indie Music > Folk > Singer Songwriters

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

37 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfectly Prine!, August 23, 2000

By 

James Otterstrom (Big Bear City, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Missing Years (Audio CD)

If CDs had grooves I'd have worn this one out 20 times. John is the writer, or co-writer, on 13 of the 14 songs here, and his writing has never been more poignant, subtle, or reflective. A fine blend of bluesy folk-rock, mildly sad and nostalgic, yet there's an undercurrent of joy & humor, suggesting the confidence of a survivor who thoroughly enjoys life. This record sounds like a long lost friend who's come back to share his stories--and, with the likes of David Lindley, Albert Lee, Mike Campbell, Benmont Tench, Tom Petty, Phil Everly, Bonnie Raitt, and Bruce Springsteen paying their respects--the music transcends Prine's previous records. A warm, family-reunion like aura permeates the sound, and it's hard for me to imagine a better John Prine album, enjoyable over and over again, one of my must-have CDs.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another great album from a premier singer-songwriter, January 27, 2003

By 

Lawrance M. Bernabo (The Zenith City, Duluth, Minnesota) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Missing Years (Audio CD)

John Prine is one of those rare singer/songwriters whose literate work is more popular with fellow artists than with the listening public (Phil Everly, Tom Petty, Bonnie Raitt, and Bruce Springsteen show up to do background vocals on this album). Prine's work started with acoustic folk and then headed off in the direction of country, but the common denominator remains his quotable lyrics (e.g., "Unlonely") and his wry comic take on the world in which we live (e.g., "Daddy's Little Pumpkin"). Even when Prince gets a bit caustic, as with "All the Best," it is still a treat, but "It's a Big Old Goofy World" with all its clichés is more to my liking. Other songs, such as "Way Back Then" and "Everything is Cool", provide the emotional revelation that is Prine's true hallmark. "The Missing Years" is one of Prine's best albums (1991 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album), a shade short of his first self-title work but as good as "Sweet Revenge," "Bruised Orange," and the more recent "In Spite of Ourselves." Of course, Prine had a built in advantage with "The Missing Years" because it had been about five years since his previous album and the result was, as you would suspect, a stronger body of work.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Prine masterpiece, January 3, 2003

By 

Bt "Cat." (Parts unknown) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Missing Years (Audio CD)

This was a comeback album for John and in my opinion, it's his best ever, and boy oh boy,(no pun intended) that's saying plenty. This guy's responsible for my switch in music genre's some years ago with his early stuff. I never thought he'd top his classic self- titled and "Bruised Orange" releases, but he did it. The smartest storyteller around. Thanks John, "you got gold" inside of you.