Souvenirs

John Prine | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 31, 2000)
• Original Release Date: October 31, 2000
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Oh Boy
• ASIN: B00004YR4C
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #116,738 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

When John Prine wrote and recorded the likes of "Hello in There," "Angel from Montgomery," and "Souvenirs" in the early '70s, he came across like a Social Security recipient in a young man's body. As he revisits those tunes and more favorites from his salad days, the wisdom Prine possessed as a twentysomething troubadour seems all the more remarkable. The raison d'être for Souvenirs may be rather prosaic. Prine rerecorded 15 early classics so that he could own master recordings of a bunch of songs from his first three albums, as well as a few stragglers from the late '70s and early '80s. But the flatteringly spare arrangements and Prine's wizened delivery only add weight to these heavy-hearted folk tunes. "It took me years to get those souvenirs / And I don't know how they slipped away from me," Prine sings on the title track, a remnant from 1972's Diamonds in the Rough. Well, John, they didn't slip away at all; they're still shining like gems under a layer of dust. --Steven Stolder

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

53 of 56 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Prine Diamonds, November 10, 2000

By 

Richard L Weintraut (WINSLOW, IN United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Souvenirs (Audio CD)

From the first clear ringing guitar notes of "Souvenirs", I knew that John Prine had made this recording for ME.

ME, and all the people worldwide who love John Prine, sitting on a stool, guitar in hand, singing the songs that make us think, remember, shake our heads in wonder, sing along and smile.

We can remember Steve Goodman as we listen to "Souvenirs".

We remember that sometime in our life, deep down inside, we've all felt like Donald or Lydia.

We remember loved ones as we listen to "Grandpa Was A Carpenter".

And we sing along and smile to "Fish & Whistle and "Please Don't Bury Me".

And most of all we shake our heads in wonder while we listen to these fifteen great songs.

We wonder how someone whom we've never met can sit down and "write our feelings"...

How does he know that we once had a relationship where...

"Well ya know, she still laughs with me But she waits just a second too long...."

Or that we all have known people who have lived through...

"How the hell can a person Go to work in the morning And come home in the evening And have nothing to say..."

We stop and think when we hear....

"An old man sleeps with his conscience at night A young kid sleeps with his dreams While the mentally ill sit perfectly still And live through life's in betweens....

These are not just "songs"... They mean something to us...

I have all of John's recordings, I doubt if this one will ever leave my CD rotation...

As I read this I find that it's not really a review of the album.

It's really how I feel about John Prine.

My favorite quote about John comes from Bonnie Raitt...

"What makes John's songs so special is that there's no separating who he is from his music - you just love "him"...

"He's a true folk singer in the best tradition, cutting right to the heart of things, as pure and simple as rain"

That explains this recording.

If you love John Prine, you must have this recording.

If you've never heard of him... buy this recording.. then you'll love him too...

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is REAL music!, December 6, 2001

By 

Miles D. Moore (Alexandria, VA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Souvenirs (Audio CD)

There's a whole herd of singer-songwriters out there--Steve Forbert, Robbie Fulks, Guy Clark, Townes Van Zandt--who have more talent individually than every combined member of every band on the Top 40, but who couldn't sell a CD if they parachuted naked with Madonna and Britney Spears onto the roof of Caesar's Palace. (Steve Earle and John Hiatt do a little better in the sales department, but not much.) Of this brilliant but unfortunate group, none is better than John Prine, and "Souvenirs" is a latter-day collection of some of his best songs. It takes chutzpah to write, "These songs are beautiful," at the beginning of your own liner notes, but in Prine's case he is only acknowledging the obvious. Songs like "Fish and Whistle," "Angel from Montgomery" and "Christmas in Prison" have the gritty, poignant inevitability we associate with the classic folk songwriters--Bob Dylan, Hank Williams, Woody Guthrie. Prine's blunt, tuneless voice--rather like Dylan's, but with a little more country and whiskey in it--is the perfect expressive instrument for these wonderful songs.

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Deja-nirs, November 2, 2000

By 

Anton R Dotson (Las Vegas, NV United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Souvenirs (Audio CD)

John Prine's newest disc is a collection of re-recordings of songs he has previously recorded/released over the last 30 years. His songs songs have worn well travelled paths in my musical landscape, the lyrics automatically spill forward as a song plays, comfortable and familiar. That familiarity can be a mixed blessing in this case. The new recordings are very similarly arranged compared to the originals, but not exactly so, throwing off my car karaoke timing,just enough; familiar but different. That's a nerdy fan's problem. Mr. Prine has assembled a wonderfully recorded batch of wonderful songs. His voice now has a more fragile and fleeting quality, almost like he's singing about feelings he remembers having, rather than narrating as present emotion. "Angel from Montgomery" and "Blue Umbrella" are great cuts that push this feeling home, not as raw as the originals, but with a melancholy that conveys the original feeling. "Fish and Whistle" is more relaxed sounding than the original; "Souvenirs" is less bitter. It's great fun to compare these versions to the originals sonically and emotionally. Deep down, Mr. Prine's voice sneeks in more retrospective acceptance or contentment on these versions. I feel like he is singing from some place that does have a happy (or graceful)ending, that's the greatest feeling of all on this disc. All John Prine fans must purchase, savor, and compare. Any other interested party should consider this a terrific 'Introduction to John Prine': purchase, listen, learn, then explore the originals as well. It is not very often that we get a chance to see how such an essential artist reapproaches so many hallmark songs and bends them ever so slightly, I should age so gracefully. Very enjoyable and highly recommended.