Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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26 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
One of the best of the decade, January 19, 2000
I rarely give 5 star reviews, if only to make a point that few CDs actually deserve them. But this disc is truly special. While all of Uncle Tupelo's previous works hinted at their amazing potential, it all came together here. Whether you're a fan of country, rock, or alternative, you will love this album. They incorporate country, folk, blues, rock, punk into one of the great demonstrations of purely American music. If this sounds like a die hard UT fan going overboard, that's understandable, but I really believe this is a phenomenal CD, worthy of anyone's attention. Its amazing to think of what they could have accomplished if they hadn't broken up after this album. Maybe they knew it would be nearly impossible to match.
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18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Irreparable Rift, August 31, 2003
By now it should be apparent that, irrespective of genre, two brilliant songwriters can coexist within the same band for only so long. Such collaborations may last but a few months, as in the case of the early incarnation of Metallica that featured both James Hetfield and Dave Mustaine, or as long as several years in the cases of the dynamic duos that fronted the Beatles (ok, George Harrison made them a dynamic trio of songwriters) and Uncle Tupelo. Ultimately, however, a band with more than one ingenious songwriter is destined to fission.Luckily, in the case of Uncle Tupelo, childhood friends Jay Farrar and Jeff Tweedy were able to work together long enough to produce four excellent studio albums, the last of which, Anodyne, represents their most remarkable artistic achievement as a songwriting team. The proceedings start out well enough with the mournful "Slate" and hoedown worthy "Acuff-Rose". However, the meat of the album starts on the third track, "The Long Cut", which is the first in what seems like an endless stream of classics to come. "Give Back the Key to My Heart" manages to be sweet, funny, and heartbreaking all at once. As perhaps the finest and most rocking song UT ever recorded, "Chickamauga" features a several minute blistering guitar solo outro that soars to the rarified heights achieved before by only a handful of bands such as Pearl Jam on "Alive" and Pink Floyd on "Comfortably Numb". After the frenzied glory of "Chickamauga", the laid-back country pickin' on "New Madrid" comes almost as a relief. "We've Been Had" snags the riff from Springsteen's "Crush on You" and does great things with it. "Steal the Crumbs" is a wonderfully mellow closer. It's a shame Farrar and Tweedy could no longer work together after Anodyne, yet you've got to admit they've both acquitted themselves quite well on their own since then. Maybe sometime I'll take the time to compare their post-Tupelo output and throw my two cents in on the Farrar vs. Tweedy debate. For now, I suggest that you pull out your copy of Anodyne, grab a bottle of IBC, and enjoy.
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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A raw, passionate parting shot, October 26, 2003
Upon the first listen to Uncle Tupelo's 1993 album Anodyne, the aura of something coming to an end is clear. Nearly every one of Farrar's songs contain lyrics hinting at separation: "The time is right for getting out while we still can", "No sign of reconciliation", "We can't seem to find common ground", and finally "No more will I see you". In hindsight, we should have seen Uncle Tupelo's demise as clearly as we should have seen Kurt Cobain's suicide. But we didn't, and that only makes the music more haunting and timeless. As splintered as some Tupelo albums are, it is ironic that Anodyne is cohesive and flows effortlessly from track to track. Jeff Tweedy clearly caught up with Jay Farrar on the album, his songs emitting the buoyant and upbeat antidote to Farrar's mournful ballads. The frenetic energy of the band's early days is gone, replaced with a more balanced and subdued mix of rock and country. The band's sophistication has always stood in contrast with its age, but while listening it's hard to imagine that this band has only been releasing albums for 4 years. While Anodyne is UT's first release on a major label, it retains the raw edge of earlier releases; this can be attributed to the band's standards of getting the songs down live in one take. Mistakes are clearly audible and some parts could be tightened, but the deficiencies actually add to the quality and credibility of the album creating an achingly vulnerable atmosphere. Remarkably, the orchestration is stunning in most places and you have to remind yourself that there were no overdubs or studio trickery in place. Mandolins and guitars drive in sync, lap steel floats over the mix, bass hooks abound creating a sound that at the same time soothes and rubs against the grain of your eardrums. The songs are the best the band ever created as a unit and the lyrics, Farrar's especially, reveal the anatomy of the band's breakdown in a poignant manner. By the time the chorus of the closing track "Steal the Crumbs" comes around anyone who cares about the band's music will feel saddened and deprived of what this band could have become. The bottom line: Anodyne is essential for any fan of rock music. Pick it up, it's impossible to be let down.
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