Spooked

Robyn Hitchcock | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 5, 2004)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Yep Roc Records
• ASIN: B0002Y4SYS
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Music
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #100,600 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Recorded in Nashville with Gillian Welch and David Rawlings, Robyn Hitchcock's 23rd solo album in as many years finds him continuing in the acoustic mold of Luxor but with a good dose of Americana, relying solely on the pair for accompaniment, backing vocals, and production. According to Hitchcock, Spooked is essentially the product of a weeklong Dylan-fueled jam session with Welch and Rawlings, a fan of whose Hitchcock had recently become but who had been fans of his for nearly 20 years. "It was as if I was inside one of their records, but with me singing too," said Hitchcock about the sessions, and their influence is indeed palpable, most notably on songs like the folksy "English Girl," with its plaintive guitar and Wurlitzer accompaniment, and the slide-heavy, drum-propelled "We're Gonna Live in the Trees."

Yet the real standout tracks are those to which Welch and Rawlings lend their harmonic talents, such as "Demons and Fiends" and especially "Television." The latter, an earnest, pleading song of love, is among the most heartfelt of Hitchcock's career, even with his bedroom TV set its nominal object. ("Television, I'm so sorry / If I turned you off back then / I'm so small in your dimension / My kid will look like you, I swear.") So it remains a safe bet that there never will be a Robyn Hitchcock album that can't be described at least partially as "quirky"--this one certainly fits the bill. But being able to express penetrating insight and emotion through superficially bizarre material has always been one of his major talents, and Spooked demonstrates that, at age 51, Robyn Hitchcock's best days are definitely not behind him. --Benjamin Lukoff

Recommended Albums by Robyn Hitchcock and Gillian Welch

Moss Elixir	A Star for Bram	I Often Dream of Trains
Time (The Revelator)	Revival	The Soft Boys, Underwater Moonlight

Product Description

Yep Roc records is proud to release "Spooked", a collaboration by English singer-songwriter/eccentric Robyn Hitchcock and acclaimed Americana duo Gillian Welch and David Rawlings.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Back on the Bandwagon February 7, 2005

By S. Finefrock VINE™ VOICE

Format:Audio CD

Years ago, I became aquainted with the works of Robyn Hitchcock through his first band the Soft Boys and his early solo works. Over the years the quality on his albums thinned out to the point that I basically lost interest. What originally began as a sureal, strange outlook spelled out in his lyrics, turned into a forced, quirky and basically unispired bore. Though all his albums would contain at least a couple gems, overall he seemed to have identified his audience and pandered to it.

Then along comes SPOOKED. Hitchcock has teemed with rustic Americana meisters Gillian Welch and David Rawlings for what is his most inspired record in years. Though one may think (or hope) that the record would be overshadowed by the American couple's folksie ways, what results is crystal-clear, classic Robyn Hitchcock. Starting with the absurdily great TELEVISION, right through to the quiet closing FLANAGAN'S SONG, this is a solid collection of songs that mingle wit, whimsey and menace into a sparkling cocktail. DEMON'S AND FIENDS, IF YOU KNOW TIME and WE'RE GONNA LIVE IN THE TREES are excellent, and the cover of Dylan's TRYING TO GET TO HEAVEN stands tall against the version from TIME OUT OF MIND.

Anyone who has been charmed in the past by Hitchcock's magic would be well advised to check in with SPOOKED. Not only one of the best things from Robyn Hitchcock, but one of the best from 2004.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic October 8, 2004

By SF Fan

Format:Audio CD

This is by far the best Robyn Hitchcock solo album in a decade. While I was a big fan of Nextdoorland, I have found his more recent solo albums to be good, but not great. Every new album has had its moments, but none really gave me that "feel" of an early Robyn Hitchcock album.

Spooked is just fantastic. It is a mostly acoustic album in the vein of EYE or I Often Dream of Trains. The songs are just wonderful, and the arrangements and production are sharp and engaging. My favorite has got to be "We're Going To Live in The Trees" followed by "Television" and "If You Know Time".

If you are a hardcore Robyn Hitchcock fan, or one of those people who thought he was "kind of okay" when he opened up for REM, or one of those people who "kind of remember that Baloon Man song", this album is for you. :)

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Magical stuff October 6, 2004

By James Moore

Format:Audio CD

This will be yet another great Robyn Hitchcock CD that will fly under the radar of everyone, and only his lifelong fans will enjoy it. That's sad, too, because this one is really special. This is a collaboration with Nashville's Gillian Welch and David Rawlings, who are also among the most underrated and underappreciated artists today. The result is beautiful; I wish that Gillian and David could play on every Robyn CD. I think this CD is more polished than his last CD, "Luxor," but it takes up where "Luxor" left off. The tracks that stand out after a couple of listens are "Television" "English Girl" "Creeped Out" "Flanagan's Song" and the Dylan cover. But every track is interesting. In a parallel universe, Robyn would be a millionaire, and each CD would be multi-platinum--and Hillary Duff would be selling her CDs one at a time on the Internet. But there's a part of me that is glad that Robyn isn't known and understood by the masses. If you are reading this you are undoubtedly one of Robyn's fans, so you'll know what I'm talking about. By the way, Robyn will be in Austin on October 30th, 2004. If anyone is out there reading this who is going to the show--look for me. I'll be the tall guy with the Soft Boys t-shirt on.