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29 of 30 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
he's gonna mess witcha, December 26, 2004
It's hard to know how much of the lyrical material on this disc is parody, and how much reflects Tim Buckley's own descent into a tragicly hedonistic lifestyle. Three pictures on the disc portray Buckley holding and wearing a gas mask, and a post card gives us the low-down on how temperture inversions and the presence of millions of cars combine to make Los Angelas infamous as the smog capital of the world. But is the smog merely an allegory for the trademark emphasis on hedonism that also identifies L.A., and the danger this presents to our well-being? Buckley's death from a heroin overdose three years after the release of this disc points to where his own head was turning at about this time, and perhaps his own awareness of how he was polluting his own life. But how seriously can we take any of this when Buckley closes out the disc singing "Beat me, whip me, spank me, make it right again" as the chorus to 'Make It Right'? Can he be serious? The post card on the cover requests 50 copies of the disc for the Apollo Massage Parlor since it "sounds real great to rub downs". More parody? Actually, it probably would be a great rub-down soundtrack! And on the opener, 'Move With Me', Buckley is seemingly talking about messing with another man's wife, but the chorus intones that he wants to "mess witcha, mess witcha, mess witcha mind". I get the feeling Buckley means to mess with our psyche's more than our drives. On the other hand, it's hard to argue with the blatant sexuality of 'Get On Top', and on 'Devil Eyes' we have "I got so tired of meaningful looks, I got so tired of coming up lame". Perhaps he's hinting at the symbolic, while hitting us with a ton of erotic bricks.
Aside from the question of how messed up Buckley was becoming, little else about the disc is in question. This to me is Tim Buckley's finest moment. I owned the original vinyl copy while I was in college, and was greatly taken with the funky rock tones underlying each and every song. 'Move With Me' and 'Get On Top' shake it up the best (and there were plenty of times I pulled this disc out of the liner just to hear these two songs), but every track is a toe-tapper. At this point in my life I'm much more appreciative of the quality of voice that Buckley brings to the numbers. He possesses a noticably wide octave range, and while these songs don't always offer him the opportunity to exercise his cords as much as some of his earlier folk fare did, the high and low notes struck can still be stunning. And however you might experience Buckley's voice, and whether he is being sincere or not, he always manages to at least sound sincere. Perhaps it's part of the ruse...
Even though the lyrics and Buckley's voice will capture most of your attention, there is fine back-up work from Buckley and Joe Falsia on guitars, Chuck Rainey on bass and Ed Greene on drums. While this group supplies the core instrumentation, Buckley finds room to throw in the occasional sax, piano, conga, cello, organ, violin, viola, and the Motown sound on backing vocals from Clydie King, Venetta Fields, and Lorna Maxine Willard on two tracks. Don't expect any of the soft and gentle folk tunes that dominated Buckley's 1960's work. He's sold out his Judy Collins persona for a run at Janis Joplin. Lyrics are not included in the intriguing liner, but can be had at http://www.lyricsdownload.com/tim buckley
Tim Buckley always seemed to be on the outside looking in, and this album was so far-out in its subject matter for 1972 (ironically it was recorded at Far Out Studios in Hollywood... at least that's what it says) it isn't surprising it didn't appeal to a wider audience. Not many performers took the sexual revolution to these heights before or since, whether they were serious about it or not. Whatever you might think of the conscious content however, not hearing this disc will rob you of some of the finest instrumental and vocal sounds produced in the early 1970's. Let him mess witcha mind.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Whodo Voodoo, April 1, 2007
With proper promotion this could have been a huge commercial success, but then that would have spoiled the arc that Tim was on, uncompromising artistic integrity, and unrivaled talent, unnoticed and all the more powerful without the hype from Tin Pan Alley and the Under Assistant
West Coast Promo Man.
This album just flat out rocks and I wish people would quit comparing it to Jeff; it stands on its own as an authentic piece of soul music uncategorized. Personally, I never met a Buckley album that I didnt like, though some fans are still trapped in the Goodbye and Hello phase.
They have missed a lot of good music in between.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A must have CD, August 27, 2005
Greetings from LA is a classic and must have album, not only for the fans of Tim Buckley but also for those who like good music. Although, it's been years since I listened to the LP for the the first times, the melody, the vocals and the greatness of tracks such as Move with me, Sweet surrender, Get on tot and Get it right remain fresch and unique.
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by Tim Buckley 
