Fair & Square

I notice the two negative reviews I've seen here are both upset because of JP's anti-Bush stuff on "Some Humans Ain't Human." Specifically, he says "...some cowboy from Texas, starts his own war in Iraq..."

Oh....please. This is a guy who's been anti-war, anti-establishment and anti-a-whole-lot-of-other-stuff since he's been writing music. Maybe you'll recall "Your Flag Decal Won't Get You into Heaven Anymore," from his first album, or "Take the Star Out of the Window," from his second album. There's a lot of them. Either you haven't been listening, or you've just got your head so far up Bush's (...) that you're unable to hear any honest criticism without throwing the baby (an outstanding album) out with the bathwater (your political views). This is still America, more or less, and the guy has every right to say what he feels.

I've been a big Prine fan since the mid 70s, and used to go see him live with Steve Goodman back in the day. For my money, this is one of his best albums. His voice has aged (go figure), but not in any way that detracts, for me. His soul shines though on these tunes, and a few of them are really just beautiful.

I'm so happy he seems to be on the other side of his throat cancer, and is still on stages, grinning.

It's been a number of long years but well worth the wait. Who writes better songs? A great record in its own right and a fine introduction to those essential themes Prine has been working with since the 1970's. John's unique love songs: "Glory of True Love," "Long Monday," and "She is My Everything." His home and homesick songs: "My Darlin' Hometown" and a great cover of Blaze Foley's "Clay Pigeons." John's satirical eye and social conscience: "Some Humans Ain't Human" and "Crazy as a Loon." The relationship troubles we can all laugh at and identify with: "Taking a Walk," the bluesy "Morning Train," "The Moon is Down," "I Hate it when that Happens to Me," A.P. Carter's "Bear Creek Blues," and "Other Side of Town." John's sense of humor is as sharp and wonderful as ever and appears throughout. He has the most recognizable song writing voice-even when co-writing (which he does on seven of the songs here). There are two numbers with John's trademark talking/singing and a live number recorded at the Ryman Auditorium. If all this weren't enough, there are other great voices in addition to John's deep and gravelly one:: Mindy Smith and Alison Krauss doing harmony, Phil Parlapiano's ever present accordion, a great chorus on "Taking a Walk," a "call and response" group on "Safety Joe," many wonderful acoustic and electric guitar players, and a host of fine instrumentalists.

AND SHE LOOKED ME IN THE FACE
LIKE SHE NEVER DID BEFORE
I FELT ABOUT AS WELCOME
AS A WAL-MART SUPERSTORE (from "Taking a Walk")

SOME HUMANS AIN'T HUMAN
SOME PEOPLE AIN'T KIND
YOU OPEN UP THEIR HEART
AND HERE'S WHAT YOU'LL FIND
A FEW FROZEN PIZZAS
SOME ICE CUBES WITH HAIR
A BROKEN POPSICLE
YOU DON'T WANT TO GO THERE...

OR YOU'RE FEELING YOUR FREEDOM
AND THE WORLD'S OFF YOUR BACK
SOME COWBOY FROM TEXAS
STARTS HIS OWN WAR IN IRAQ (from "Some Humans Ain't Human")

CONSTANTINOPLE IS A MIGHTY LONG WORD
GOT THREE MORE LETTERS THAN MOCKINGBIRD
YOU PUT ME ON A MORNING TRAIN
YOU PUT ME ON A MORNING TRAIN
AIN'T NO NEED TO EXPLAIN
YOU PUT ME ON A MORNING TRAIN (from "Morning Train")

SHE KNOWS EVERYBODY
FROM MUHAMMAD ALI TO TEACHING BRUCE LEE HOW TO DO KARATE
SHE CAN LEAD A PARADE WHILE PUTTING ON HER SHADES IN HER MASARATI
SHE KNOWS EVERYBODY (from "She is My Everything")

WELL I ONCE KNEW A MAN WHO WAS GOING INSANE
HE LET LOVE CHASE HIM RIGHT UP A TREE
IT TOOK THE POLICE AND FIRE TRUCK JUST TO BRING HIM BACK DOWN
I HATE IT WHEN THAT HAPPENS TO ME (from "I Hate it When That Happens to Me")

A CLOWN PUTS HIS MAKE-UP ON UPSIDE DOWN
SO HE WEARS A SMILE EVEN WHEN HE WEARS A FROWN
YOU MIGHT THINK I'M HERE WHEN YOU PUT ME DOWN
BUT ACTUALLY I'M ON THE OTHER SIDE OF TOWN (from "Other Side of Town")

Prine fans will recognize the Prine voice in the above excerpts. Newcomers should "loosen up the buckle on your heart and start to chuckle" (from "Safety Joe").

...I'd fall in love with "Fair & Square" anyway. But I've been a John Prine fan for years, and I think this may be his best since his 1st album over 30 years ago. That's saying alot because Mr. Prine's 1st album is one of my favorites of any style in all of time. I grew up as a rock/funk/jazz fan and never cared much for country or folk music (Merle Haggard & Johnny Cash being 2 of a small handful of exceptions).
It would be redundant to repeat all the other reviews describing the songs, so here's why I like "Fair & Square" so much: aside from having all the elements that make John unique (wry wit, lyrics that make you think, etc.), his voice gives these tunes a dark, sentimental - even innocent charm. It would be tough for anyone else to give the same songs the same flavor. Also the melodies are refreshingly simple, as are the instrumental arrangements. "The Glory of True Love" bounces along with a friendly vibe, then out of nowhere, the mandolin takes a dark minor scale solo and the guitar lurches out with the rockabilly blues, then right back to happy again. But ain't love just like that? Therein lies the subtle genius of Prine.
Jason Wilbur plays what the old folks call "sideman", a term for lead guitarist of a famous name (Scotty Moore was Elvis Presley's sideman, Don Rich was Buck Owen's sideman, etc.). Mr. Wilbur has much to do with taking these songs to a unique refreshing place. I saw JP in concert supporting this album accompanied by Jason Wilbur (electric guitar) and Dave Jacques (stand-up and electric bass). Taking nothing away from Dave, but Jason displayed some amazing chops - not fast, but different. Steel guitar licks, interesting double-stops, triple string bends, drew enthusiastic applause from the audience after many of his solos. I mention this because this kind of playing is all over the album as well.
Do yourself a favor and trust me on this one. It's a great album by anyone's standards.

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