Customer Reviews

Oh Brother Where Art Thou

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I got this album as a gift from a friend who purchased it for me knowing I liked the music in the movie, 'O Brother where are thou.' My friend obviously didn't realize this wasn't the movie soundtrack. But that said, this is a wonderful album, worth listening to on its own merits. Bright, catchy melodies with lyrics that make you think.

I have had this CD for... I think 6 years now; and it has rarely left my playing rotation. Bright, uptempo and sunny bossa-pop, skiffling from ska to Jazz Butcher and "Eden"-era Everything But The Girl with a sarcastic-adenoidal male lounge singer and the absolutely dreamiest female singer (dreamy, as in overdosed on honey-lemon Vicks coughdrops dreamy). A couple songs catch you off-guard in their melancholy; on reflection, the whole album is infused with a kind of nostalgia and regret. This takes reflection, though, which doesn't happen when listening to the album, you're too busy snapping your fingers and smiling. La di da.

I know this guy must be swelling with $ and pride over the naming of this worthy recording. I, too, found this while my friend was looking for the soundtrack for the nice movie. So, I stumbled on it on my hard drive, and I really like it. I like it better than the Grammy Award winning soundtrack. That has qualities too. But I have been listening to Big Lazy, Yo La Tengo,Januaries, and some Dan Hicks and the Hot Licks,some acoustic Bossa Nova, so this fit right in. I LIKE it.

Wake up people before you write your reviews.

The Jim Ruiz album on this page is very different from the movie soundtrack which is great in a very different way, but you should own both.

The Jim Ruiz album is fantastic!!!! The lyrics are funny and smart, set to a samba beat. I have owned it for 5 years and I never get tired of it.

I did see them live at the Fez in NYC which will be the only negative thing I have to say about them. Very disappointing performance.

Really great, fun, smart, happy music

...and this is my favorite one of all. The perfect amalgamation of EBTG, Aztec Camera, Billy Bragg, the Colourfield, etc.

A lot of mid-90's releases that jumped on the retro-lounge bandwagon were either just aping a style for the irony or...just jumping on the bandwagon to make a buck. Not so Jim Ruiz. He really loves this kind of music, has totally absorbed it, and will sing its virtues to anyone who will listen, including all the friends and family he has convinced to be in his band. He has also used this musical style as a vehicle for some very impressive, heartfelt songs and performances on this release and the much more varied, better-recorded follow-up, Sniff. Both are fantastic, but if I had to pick one it would be this one.

This CD is beyond words. If you like lounge/indie rawk music, this CD is for you. It is happy & moving music for your soul. This has been a top 10 in my CD books for many years.

I would have given this four stars, but not every song works. Still, a worthy addition to your collection of martini music. I keep coming back to it after not listening to it for a while, so maybe it is better than I thought. I will change it to 4 stars.

A dear friend of mine gave me this CD years ago..I loved it, and still do, from Stormtooper, to Bloody Yugo it is a great CD, Jim and Stephanie have wonderful voices, and are a blast to listen to. One of my all time favorite CD's..EVER