Customer Reviews

NEVERTHELESS OPTIMISTIC

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What can one say about R. Stevie Moore than hasn't been said about . . . oh, say . . . Brian Wilson, Todd Rundgren, Frank Zappa, or fill in your own ultra-original creative genius. R. Stevie is a musical machine, having cranked out nearly 400 (count `em 400!) full-length albums since 1968. As Nevertheless Optimistic demonstrates, he is proficient and original in virtually every musical genre. He is a brilliant arranger and producer of SOUNDS, an excellent satirist, biting social commentator, insightful observer of the human condition, a hopelessly romantic poet, curmudgeon, and country comedian. He is overwhelming. His music will draw you in, and then push you away, even though you want to get closer. His music touches, and makes one aware of feelings that one might not wish to be aware of, or feel. Is that not art? For the uninitiated, Nevertheless Optimistic is an excellent place to begin exploring the depth of R.Stevie's musical diversity and virtuosity , equaled by only a handful of people on the planet. Treat yourself, and keep an open mind.

Everything you've heard about this guy is true. This disc is like a mini-White Album-- hooks galore, every tune sticks in your head, and if you didn't know it from the liner notes, you'd never guess the same guy wrote "Part of the Problem" and "Back in Time" and "Moons." Even when he's goofing around, as on "Funny Child," the melody is so strong you'll find yourself humming it three days later.

In a perfect world R. Stevie Moore would be recognised for the maverick pop genius that he is. Think Brian Wilson/Beatles/glam rock/punk/new wave/ambient/musique concrete/folk/country and he does the lot, what's more he can do them in the space of one song!! His material has been frustratingly difficult to track down (I initially came across him purely by accident)but since the advent of the internet he has been more accessible to me via www.rsteviemoore.com; This collection is a good place to start for the uninitiated, just a mighty fine collection of Stevie's more accessible commercial material collected from 30 years of recordings. Idiosyncratic? yes, Dull? Never. Fed up with a world populated with dull vacuous pop idol type wannabees? Check this out!!

I've been a fan of R. Stevie Moore's brilliant pop and experimental masterpieces since way back in the early 80s when we used to trade cassette tapes through the US Postal Service. These days I have a giant stack of his CDs and I always go back to them. I put RSM in the same category as The Beatles and the Beach Boys and various other rare folks who are undeniably tapped into whatever that special thing is that throws what appear to be simple little tunes into a whole 'nother place. There's so much going on with the creative output of this guy, it can be a little overwhelming. I can dig into my collection and still find stunning little songs that I feel like I'm discovering for the first time. Why he isn't the richest man in show business is a mystery I will never understand. Forget the labels. Ignore the "eccentric" or the "outsider music" stuff you might hear about him, and learn to listen through the sometimes shaky sound quality, and you'll discover about a million of your new favorite songs.

This cd is amazing! R. Stevie Moore is one of the most amazing musicians I have ever listened to. His lyrics are very clever as well, not the putrid sameness of most top 40 pop. This cd has slow as well as more up beat songs. Stevie moves well from one to the other. I have listened to the Beatles White

Album as well as Pet Sounds by the Beach Boys. As much acclaim as those albums get, I still think this album is more creative and musically pleasing.

Long live R. Stevie Moore! There hasn't been a musical genius like this since

Mozart!

I'm just one more person who needs to sing the praises of this album. The songwriting is so strong that one immediately forgets any of the technical deficiencies of the recordings.
In a perfect world, bands would cover R. Stevie Moore songs the way they used to cover Bob Dylan songs. Good lord, I might even start listening to the radio again if that happened!

I can add practically nothing to the other reviews of this extraordinary collection of extraordinary songs written, recorded, played by and produced in the inimitable manner of one R. Stevie Moore. The man is a legend and his enormous catalog is legendary. Take everything great, interesting, unusual, witty, odd, tuneful,
mindblowing, idiosyncratic, emotional, and special about music recorded in the last 60 years, pop it in a blender named Moore
and drink up the tasty results!

Words can't express...our infinite smallness compared to his.....infinite bigness just makes our smallness and his bigness seem like......ummm, from entirely different planets. Or so I think.
Maybe not?
Can't I just be a lumberjack or something?
Buy it and believe in something bigger than yourself, or Britney, whatever.

The music of R. Stevie Moore is one of life's hidden treasures. He's got 300 or so albums of homemade brilliance. This disc is a great start for someone who doesn't know RSM's music and a great listen for the people who already have piles of it on cassettes and CD-R's. While I love the entire disc, "Irony," "Back In Time," "I Hate People" and "Moons" are particular favorites. If you have any doubts about whether to buy this, I recommend you push them violently aside and experience the gifts of R. Stevie Moore immediately.

R. Stevie Moore is a home recording genius who has been on the cutting edge of D.I.Y. since the early 1970s. He knows how to craft pop masterpieces, but often things go wrong in the recording process. Perhaps he plans it that way. But whether they are mistakes or happy accidents, the result is that RSM songs don't sound like anybody's but his own. He is very idiosyncratic, and not mainstream-slick. He sings in a variety of registers, and is a master at getting amazing colors out of guitars and keyboards. Apparently he records and hides out in a New Jersey apartment and rarely performs or goes into studios. He has collaborated via CD-by-mail on NEVERTHELESS OPTIMSTIC with Kramer, Dave Gregory (of XTC), and others. There's even a duet with outsider scat-singer Shooby Taylor.

Moore's releases are irregular and hard to find. This is a great collection spanning almost 30 years of his output. Highly recommended to those who are weary of formula pop and pretty boys. His complete catalogue is available at rsteviemoore.com. He merits greater attention as someone who has created a tremendous legacy of individualistic genius. Often such visionaries are recognized after they die. R. Stevie is still alive, and deserves your support.