Ladie's Love Oracle [Bonus Track]

Grant-Lee Phillips

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 20, 2002)
• Original Release Date: August 20, 2002
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Zoe Records
• ASIN: B00006FDR7
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #95,449 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
On his debut solo effort, Grant-Lee Phillips proclaims, "Sometimes a sketch says more than a mural." Although it would be a mistake to dismiss Ladies' Love Oracle as merely a collection of sketches, that idea helped inform this set of acoustic guitar-driven ballads. The material found here isn't so much sketches of songs as of the songwriter himself--pieces of the artist as he reinvents himself in the wake of an artistically and critically (if not commercially) successful career with his former group, Grant Lee Buffalo. Ladies' Love Oracle finds the artist exploring unrequited love on "Lonesome Serenade" and perhaps reflecting on his place in the music world on "Nothing Is for Sure." The songs are fleshed out with simple arrangements on the harmonica, piano, and whatever other instruments Phillips seems to have picked up while recording in producer-musician Jon Brion's (Aimee Mann, Fiona Apple) basement studio. The result is an intimate view into the soul of a uniquely gifted singer-songwriter as he takes inventory of his life at a crossroads. --Michael Wells

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Grant goes solo, September 24, 2002

By	"junkmanchris" (Chicago, IL United States) - See all my reviews

I know this album has been released for a while but nobody has written anything on it yet so I thought I would give it a shot.

I have been a long time fan of Grant Lee Phillips. From the days of Grant in Grant Lee Buffalo, I have closely followed his music career. Armed with a twelve string acoustic guitar and his incredible voice of scratchy low whispers to high floating falsettos, Grant once again proves that his singing and songwriting hasn't fallen with Grant Lee Buffalo. Ladie's Love Oracle is a much more stripped down version than the earlier GLB sound. Usually with only a piano, guitar, and vocals, LLO is a much more organic sounding album. While listening, you almost feel that Grant is right in the room playing and singing for you playing these great new songs. The album really exposes Grant in respect to his voice and songwriting ability due to such sparse instrumentation. The direction of LLO still holds true to Grant's style of folk/rock songwriting. And what better person to help in his solo project than with Jon Brion.

If you have been a Grant Lee Buffalo fan or are just looking for something new, I would highly recommend LLO.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Find, December 26, 2002

By	Mike (New York) - See all my reviews

I stumbled across this CD just a couple of weeks ago. I'd never heard of Grant Lee Phillips before, but decided to give it a try after a qucik listen at the store. This is a GREAT CD. Very mellow, great vocals and a nice blend of simple instrumentation. I haven't stopped playing it. I'm looking forward to hearing more of his stuff.

2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great record, May 10, 2005

By	C. Schollaert (Boulder, CO) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is Grant Lee Phillips' first solo cd and like the next two (Mobilize and Virginia Creeper), this one is original, unique and amazingly crafted. Grant Lee is one of the best songwriters in the U.S. today. The only thing better than listening to the cd is catching him live. I've had the pleasure of seeing him in Amsterdam, Denver, D.C. and Boulder and lemme tell ya: he is tremendous on stage.