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16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Eat the Apple, October 9, 2004
On the inner cover is a picture of a hand offering a green apple. Whether the apple symbolizes temptation or affinity with the Beatles' era music, this is such a delicious CD that we do well to eat the apple. From the opening of "How to Quit" Sam's guitar and Carla Azar's drums pound out a simple rhythms that shimmer & glow. My favorite track is "All Night" with its eastern European rhythms that take two drummers and Sam's hushed vocal allure, "Sleepless questions & some sly suggestions that I could fly if I could only fall; I've been wanting to touch you since we met." "Open the World" seems like an off-kilter romance with music that keeps trying to fit together mirroring the awkwardness of emotion reflected in the lyric, "You caught me wanting & the shame in my eyes was so inductive that it magnetized us pulling down my need." "Red Silk Five" is deceptively simple, but entirely addictive. Phillips' songs are short, the longest clocking in an eyelash over 4 minutes, with two songs under 2 minutes, yet the time is fully embodied and hardly seems short. "Draw Man" has a lighthearted soft melodic shuffle with a terrific lyric, "It's too much trouble to impress you; My lies are never big enough; I use the truth to cover up where you're looking." Another wonderfully addictive song sounds like it could be the cabaret soundtrack for Sartre's "No Exit" about a love triangle where each loves the next. "If I Could Write" has the most instrumentation with Patrick Warren's string arrangement on this lighthearted melody that crosscuts with a complex lyric, "Desire's the element that I can't fight, dream is the arm of God." "Hole in My Pocket" conveys such yearning with Sam's understated vocals. The CD concludes with a somewhat pessimistic message that help is coming "One Day Late." Phillips' melodies, lyrics, vocals and T-Bone Burnett's superb production make "A Boot & A Shoe" one of the year's best accomplishments. Bravo!
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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wry, sly and knowing, October 25, 2004
The second time I put this CD on the stereo, I felt as if I had already heard it a hundred times. There is something about the melodies and the lyrics of Sam Phillips that makes the songs irresistibly catchy.
They're not catchy in a bubble-gum pop way, however. The songs catch me right in the gut. There is a part of me that responds wholeheartedly to a vision like that of Sam Phillips; a world which is wry, sly and knowing. This is music that is written to appeal to adults and people who think like adults.
The friend who recommended the album to me said it was "old-timey," but the more I listen, the more I think that's completely the wrong way to describe it. She uses old-time instrumentation that recalls jug bands, string quartets and lonely young women in walk-up apartments with acoustic guitars. But those voicings are assembled in a modern way.
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20 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
open the world, June 21, 2004
This record is yet another brilliant piece of work from Sam. It does require a few listens to really kick in, but once it does, it just won't let go.The virgin era albums were more full blown, Technicolor productions. This and "Fan Dance" are more black and white in approach,( there are some who don't like black and white, so sorry) but to say that they are unadorned is simply not true. Half of this album has beautiful string arrangements; there's some pretty great drumming going on, heck the first song has a doubletracked vocal on it. For those who feel it's one long song, listen again. I always thought that the best things about Sam are her songs and her voice. The melodies are memorable, tuneful. Nobody writes more economically than Sam; why write three verses when two will do? I didn't notice any " cosmic whining" in the lyrics. You can read into it any way you like; I think Sam likes to leave things open to interpretation, leave some mystery there. As for her singing, she is a great vocalist, making the most of what she has.
Some have complained about the length. Well, Revolver and Pet Sounds are short albums too. This record doesn't need to be any longer than it is. It feels complete to me. In some ways, this and "Fan Dance" are the best work Sam has done. The Virgin era owed a lot sonically to the Beatles. I think these records are unique.No one is quite working in the same territory. I think that is why Sam has fallen in between the cracks, there is no easy categorization to her approach, and there never was. There are many rich rewards to be found here. This is a great album. Open the world and listen.
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album A Boot and a Shoe 
