Customer Reviews

On Your Sleeve

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

 

 

First off, I love Jesse's original material. His bizzare way of singing seems to work so well in songs of his. But these covers are a nowhere road, and I think he proves he has neither the range nor the tonal quality to do justice to some of the great songs he has chosen on this one. Keep writing those originals Jesse - that's what you do best!

Jesse Malin occasionally does covers during his live shows and it's always a treat. I asked him after a show last year in Orlando (when he did a great version of Harry Nilsson's "Everybody's Talkin') about doing a CD of covers. But he was reticent, saying he didn't want to be known as a covers act. Anybody who has followed his career knows he's much, much more than that.

How delightful, then, that he's done this CD. The covers are great, the sound quality suberb, the guitars bright and energetic. He gives these songs his own interpretation, but only slightly so. In other words, he doesn't distort them beyond recognition. It's a fun CD, not aspiring to be something it isn't.

If you like Jesse's work and some of these songs in their original versions, you'll love this CD.

I don't care what anybody says this is an excellent covers album.

Malin's distinctive high lonesome voice lends pathos to the romantic songs here and the songs that rock really get a jolt from his interpretation.

I purchased this even after reading some of these negative reviews. I never expected him to sound just like the originals. Just give a new look and sound that moves the listener. He did great.!!

I compare Malin to Peter Wolf. They are both under appreciated. They are both great American artists.

When I heard the cover of "Operator, that's not the way it feels" I knew I had to have this cd. It is a great cover, the best that I have heard. The other cool thing about this cd of covers is that he picked songs that are not all well known. I like that. Now that I own this cd, I will be looking into checking out other music by Jesse Malin. Great stuff covered well.

Jessie has released some borderline memorable material on albums like The Fine Art of Destruction and The Heat (both a must for your collection), but my expectations of his putting that unique voice of his on some classic rock hits of the past were really jilted. The album never finds the groove to draw you in and keep you there. In most cases Jessie fails to add anything new to what we got from the original artists, and in most cases, he fails to come close to capturing their originality. By the last tune, Everybody's Talking, you find yourself wishing they'd just shut up.

I just had to write a review on this one. This is a really great collection of covers which stand up well to being given the "Jesse Malin" treatment. A wide span of sources means that nearly everyone will have one or more of these songs in their record collection. A bit like exploring an old house you used to live in as a kid. The recording of these songs must have been fun and that reflects in the listening value. A perfect way to tip the hat to songs that have meant something along the line. Hopefully there is still room for the artist to do what he wants once in a while. If Jessie ever stops being the individualist he is or starts doing things "traditionally" then the world will have lost a little bit more of it's originality and be one step closer to being just a great big global city with no "artistic pilots" flying close to the sun. Do yourself a favour....go out and buy this together with Mercury Retrograde.....thanks Jessie...please don't ever change!

...but unfortunately, they're very few. While it's nearly always interesting to hear a musician cover the songs that influenced them, it doesn't always work. In order for a cover version to be good, it needs to be translated through the covering artist's sensibilities, while still remaining somewhat respectful to the source material. Think Pin Ups [ECD], or Warren Zevon's cover of "Back in the High Life Again."

Jesse Malin, a very good singer and songwriter in his own right, mostly fails to bring anything new to these songs. However, there are exceptions--an acoustic workout through the Hold Steady's "You Can Make Him Like You" strips the song down to its bare essentials and reveals something previously hidden behind the original's desperate wall of noise. "Hungry Heart" and "Harmony" are likewise retooled just enough to put a new spin on the material, and they work nicely. However, his cover of the Rolling Stones' "Sway" doesn't sound that different from any cover band playing for beer on a Saturday night might play it. Still, though, the album only truly falls on its face once--with the cover of the Pogues classic "Fairytale of New York." There's no way Malin can even come close to either adding anything to or changing the wrecked emotional impact of the original.

Everything else is, at least, pleasant. His takes on Jim Croce and Harry Nilson are fine, and it's interesting to hear a song like "Walk on the Wild Side" performed by anyone who isn't Lou Reed. If these songs were sprinkled throughout a much longer live set, or included on the odd album here and there, I'd like them a lot better. As it is, seek out Malin's own songs, instead.

Mr. Mallin doesn't do anything noteworthy with any of these cover songs. Some of the playing is sloppy, and it makes you harken back to originals oh so strongly. It's a long fall from "Glitter in the Gutter." It's destined to be a 99 cent resale.