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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
It took a few listens to like this album and now I think it is great.
If you like Jill Sobule then for me this is a good continuation of her work.
There is a new edge to her music in places; touching it with 60s sounds and even a hint of the desert that is a continent away from her previous New York based albums.
In the world of the MySpace Hit and itunes one track buys this collection may get lost; but buy it, listen to it and you will be rewarded.
This is music for grown up people.
If you like Jill Sobule then for me this is a good continuation of her work.
There is a new edge to her music in places; touching it with 60s sounds and even a hint of the desert that is a continent away from her previous New York based albums.
In the world of the MySpace Hit and itunes one track buys this collection may get lost; but buy it, listen to it and you will be rewarded.
This is music for grown up people.
Format:Audio CD
I guess this would come under the category of quirky female song writer with attitude-also with sense of humour thankfully-so we don't get sermonising just astute and upfront observation-reminds me of early Louden Wainwright but this is also very musical in its own right and doesn't just get by on the excellence of the lyrics. Produced by Don Was and with the ever present Jim Keltner on drums the album has a good balance to it-thankfully no discernible strings, its still the lyrics that take to the 5 star level-she has a way of referencing just enough to hook you in to the song, Gram Parsons, Leroy Brown, London Calling.. and that's the first 3 tracks, the 3rd of which "Nothing to prove" is nothing short of hilarious. We're back to referencing again for Where is Bobby Gentry?-..I was the baby who was thrown off the Talahachie Bridge. Wendell Lee chronicles ex lovers (of both sexes it would appear) in Tracy Ermin Stlye but again with humour as well as anger. I'd really like to catch her live, she also has an excellent contribution to the cd of the 'Tell us the Truth' benefit in the fine company of Steve Earle and Billy Bragg, which is where I first heard if her.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
12 reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Jill Is THE BEST
15 April 2009
Jill Sobule has been writing the kind of tight, catchy songs you can't help but hum--or whistle--or sing to yourself--long after you've heard them. And she's been doing it for years. The new stuff offered here is no different--San Francisco, Nothing To Prove, Where Is Bobbie Gentry--I'm trying to pull out the best songs here, but heck, they're all good. Really good. There isn't a weak track on this recording.
Jill's songs can be wickedly satirical, poignant, pointed, subtly hilarious, or broken-hearted (but never cloying or saccharine)--sometimes within the same song. And yes, she "kissed a girl" back when that other singer was still in diapers, but that song, her "big hit," is only representative of her work by it's hooks and wit. It was a pop masterpiece and hugely popular, but it isn't even close to her best work. This is.
As an aside, and to demonstrate how much people love Jill Sobule's music, this record was fully funded by HER FANS--not a record company. Many, many average, everyday people sent investments, ultimately raising about $80,000, which was used to record, produce, and publish this record. That's how much people wanted a new Jill Sobule record.
They weren't disappointed. The result, produced by legendary rock maestro Don Was, is flawless. Buy it; you won't be disappointed, either.
Jill's songs can be wickedly satirical, poignant, pointed, subtly hilarious, or broken-hearted (but never cloying or saccharine)--sometimes within the same song. And yes, she "kissed a girl" back when that other singer was still in diapers, but that song, her "big hit," is only representative of her work by it's hooks and wit. It was a pop masterpiece and hugely popular, but it isn't even close to her best work. This is.
As an aside, and to demonstrate how much people love Jill Sobule's music, this record was fully funded by HER FANS--not a record company. Many, many average, everyday people sent investments, ultimately raising about $80,000, which was used to record, produce, and publish this record. That's how much people wanted a new Jill Sobule record.
They weren't disappointed. The result, produced by legendary rock maestro Don Was, is flawless. Buy it; you won't be disappointed, either.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
What a Wonderful shared gift!
15 April 2009
Format:Audio CD
I've just finished my second listen...(on my third as I type) After eagerly waiting for this record for so long... absolutely not disappointed! I'm not surprised, I Love everything Jill Sobule does, she's such a special talent.
Funded by loving fans, Jill Sobule returned the Love with this wonderful album. It's all things at once... familiar, fresh, intimate, catchy. As usual there is wonderful storytelling and smart, clever, gifted songwriting.
If your already a fan you know how special she is and this is a wonderful addition to her catalog. If your new to Jill's music do yourself a favor and check her out, she's a very unique voice and is everything that the music industry should be. She's an original Artist with talent & integrity!
Funded by loving fans, Jill Sobule returned the Love with this wonderful album. It's all things at once... familiar, fresh, intimate, catchy. As usual there is wonderful storytelling and smart, clever, gifted songwriting.
If your already a fan you know how special she is and this is a wonderful addition to her catalog. If your new to Jill's music do yourself a favor and check her out, she's a very unique voice and is everything that the music industry should be. She's an original Artist with talent & integrity!
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Out in California
24 Oct 2009
Format:Audio CD
I was fortunate enough to catch Jill Sobule at Philadelphia's Tin Angel club, where she not only previewed some of these songs for us lucky attendees, but she also invited me (and a bunch of others) to sing "All The Young Dudes" with her. She also sold us download "USB keys" that offered the opportunity to own that night's show...so somewhere out there, you can hear my voice bellowing the verses to Mott The Hoople with Jill. But that also meant that I've been listening to "San Francisco," "Nothing To Prove" and a few others prior to "California Years" arriving.
So I am already predisposed to loving this CD, and Jill Sobule once again did not let me down. Fan-funded and self-released, "California Years' is primarily inspired by Jill's move out west and all the golden glow (and mirages) Southern Cal has to offer. There's the on/off fascination that opens the album on a visit to Palm Springs, where a hike into the beautiful desert hills is so hot that you turn back, or vibrancy of the pictures you've seen gives way to a resort filled with seniors.
There's also the musical contradiction. Is Palm Springs, California the sunny fun-filled world of Brian Wilson or the tragic wanderlust of Graham Parsons? Jill's previous CD, Underdog Victorious, played with the contradictions by hiding some sad subjects under glossy pop, but here the sadness gets the low cry of pedal steel. It's some pretty awesome stuff. Same for "San Francisco."
Not that Jill has lost her sense of humor. Both the biting "Nothing To Prove" and "Spiderman" take broad pokes at the entertainment business. "Mexican Pharmacy" is a bit more of a realistic take on why Tijuana has such a great rep for inexpensive drugstores. And there's the shaggy-dog story of "Where is Bobbie Gentry," which takes a long over-due look at what happened on the Tallahatchie Bridge some 40 years later.
"California Years" is proof to me that, once again, Jill Sobule's best music making years are still in progress. Her "I Kissed A Girl" fling in the spotlight may be two decades past, but CD's like "California Years" give fans like us reason to keep coming back.
So I am already predisposed to loving this CD, and Jill Sobule once again did not let me down. Fan-funded and self-released, "California Years' is primarily inspired by Jill's move out west and all the golden glow (and mirages) Southern Cal has to offer. There's the on/off fascination that opens the album on a visit to Palm Springs, where a hike into the beautiful desert hills is so hot that you turn back, or vibrancy of the pictures you've seen gives way to a resort filled with seniors.
There's also the musical contradiction. Is Palm Springs, California the sunny fun-filled world of Brian Wilson or the tragic wanderlust of Graham Parsons? Jill's previous CD, Underdog Victorious, played with the contradictions by hiding some sad subjects under glossy pop, but here the sadness gets the low cry of pedal steel. It's some pretty awesome stuff. Same for "San Francisco."
Not that Jill has lost her sense of humor. Both the biting "Nothing To Prove" and "Spiderman" take broad pokes at the entertainment business. "Mexican Pharmacy" is a bit more of a realistic take on why Tijuana has such a great rep for inexpensive drugstores. And there's the shaggy-dog story of "Where is Bobbie Gentry," which takes a long over-due look at what happened on the Tallahatchie Bridge some 40 years later.
"California Years" is proof to me that, once again, Jill Sobule's best music making years are still in progress. Her "I Kissed A Girl" fling in the spotlight may be two decades past, but CD's like "California Years" give fans like us reason to keep coming back.
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