Lost Dogs & Mixed Blessings

 

 

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Although not intuitively obvious from the title, Lost Dogs and Mixed Blessings is an album of love songs. Ranging from the cynical We are the Lonely, derived from the "personals" craze of the 90's ("SWF with breasts so large, takes Visa, AMEX and Mastercharge") to the soulful Leave the Lights On, from the whimsical Humidity Built the Snowman to the gut wrenching This Love is Real, Lost Dogs and Mixed Blessings is classic Prine. These songs are characterized by highly melodic undertones, crisp, intelligent lyrics and highly professional musicianship and production values.

To be honest, I've never understood why Prine never mad it big. He produces songs that work, as exemplified by the huge number of covers of his work. He has an infectious personality and it a tremendous stage performer. He produces albums where you actually want to listen to every single song, as opposed to most albums where you spend as much time skipping through the junk as you do listening to the one or two halfway decent songs on the album.

John Prine is a songwriter and storyteller of the first order, and this is one of his all time best albums. Take a pass on all the garbage out there and make John Prine one of your regulars-you'll never regret that you did.

Listening to this album and other greats by John Prine, I may be forever puzzeled as to why many consider JP's music as being in a Cult Status. Comparisons to Dylan & others, in my view are extremely unfair. John Prine sounds like one of the Few True Originals to me. Just about every tune on Lost Dogs + Mixed Blessing is worthy of attention, while, and you know I am right about this, just about every other artist puts out an album with 1 or 2 good tunes and a lot of fill. We Are The Lonely and Big Fat Love are Cranked-up Rockers while the other tunes are a good mix of music and lyrics that Can't be put into any one category. John's music is a good contemporary blend of a lot of styles, which indeed has the overall qualities which again, equal originality. Why I think someone like John Prine gets considered as Cult Status is because for years radio stations and record stores put him along with other great artists such as Buffy Sainte-Marie into obscure, out of the way, Folk Music Bins and while the mainstream record hunter was looking in the rock or country sections of stores they were not seeing great offerings such as John Prine. Now in the age of the PC we have a much better chance of discovering new interests/items or finding what we're searching for.
Lost Dogs And Mixed Blessings is just one of many Great John Prine albums and it's a great example of why John Prine does not need to be compared to anyone else. His music is Great on it's own.

When I was 5 years old my parents had split and an Aunt was in care. On several occaisions I was sent by my Aunt, "to the attic" in punishment for being a bad boy. The attic was a big wide-open space with lots of piles of stuff stored there. Whilst spending the hours of my punishment time in that desolate expanse of the attic on one particular day, I found a pile of my parents records collection next to a small record player. I looked at the unplugged end and quickly put two and two together and knew how to plug it into a nearby outlet. In those hours I listened to records by Frank Sinatra and Doris Day and Jim Reeves and Patsy Cline and many others, but what caught my ear and sent me along in life in pursuit of collecting and enjoying music was a 45rpm record by Johnny Cash. That record was the story of my own parents love-life: on one side: There you go, you're gone again, I should have known, I couldn't win, There you go, you're by his side, you're gonna break another heart, you're gonna tell another lie....On the other side was a song called Train Of Love, in the song, the Train Of Love is leavin'....Johnny Cash's guitar twang sound got me started in my pusuit of music throughout the rest of my life. Through years later, several times, I had heard the name of John Prine, but it always seemed to be negative reveiws and those negative reveiws influenced me to turn a deaf ear to John Prine. Many more years went by until sometime in the 1990's my wife and I turned on PBS TV one night and saw John Prine performing the songs from his "The Missing Years" CD. We were awestruck as we watched and listened. We became "instant" John Prine fans. Afterwards I was quite angry about the negative John Prine reviews that had caught my attention through so many previous years. My wife and I went out and got all of John's Recordings on CD and we listened in bliss and still do to this day. And it was during that time I learned to never ever take the word of a negative reveiw again. John Prine is one of the best singer songwriters my wife and I have ever discovered (Thank You PBS). We like a ton of music from Johnny Cash to the Beatles and now also John Prine. Then I go to the record shop and there is John Prine off in an obscure corner in a Folk Record Bin. And I say to my dear wife.....If I ever run a record shop that will be the end of catagories. Let's just put everything in alphabetical layout. You want Frank Sinatra go to F you want Beatles go to B, etc, etc,......but my biggest beef is still with negative record reveiwers, as in another example: in a record magazine review I read: Neil Young can't play guitar. And now I think: Neil Young can't play guitar, but, geez you freakin butthead-if-there-ever-was-one-reveiw-writer: Neil Young has only written and performed a few thousand songs on his accoustic guitars, so if Neil Young can't play a guitar then Mr. Negative-Reveiw-Writer, you just Do Not Exist. OK, that said, back to John Prine. There are a few good Rock Tunes on Lost Dogs And Mixed Blessings. Of all of John Prine's CD's Wife and I's favorites are Lost Dogs And Mixed Blessings and The Missing Years........but we also like just about everything else John Prine has recorded so far. And another big plus for us was when we first learned about John Prine's association and collaborations with the Late, Great, Steve Goodman. Steve Goodman wrote one of the greatest tunes of all time: "City Of New Orleans". John Prine and Steve Goodman are great together. They were meant for each other. Check out Steve Goodman's "Affordable Art" CD and others and Like Wifey and I, You'll be happy.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Prime Prine
Ok, so I stole the title from one of his albums. Sorry, John. Another long-time Prine fan here (have been hooked ever since "The Accident" back in 1976). Read more

Published on Mar 5 2003 by G. Lewis

5.0 out of 5 stars A Good Old John Prine Album
This CD has everything you want on a John Prine record. Funny stuff, sad stuff, good word play. If you like John Prine's quirky style, this one's for you. Read more

Published on Jun 3 2002

5.0 out of 5 stars John Prine Proves He's No "New Dylan" By Any Means
Indeed, when the critics brand an up-and-coming songwriter "the new Bob Dylan", it gives the artist a complex he may never live down, and a career that's anything but... Read more

Published on Oct 28 2000 by 31-year old wallflower

5.0 out of 5 stars From first to last is a winner
Like a good book or film an album requires a beginning which immediately requires attention,interest and the wonder about whats next. Read more

Published on May 1 2000 by mitchiedoo

5.0 out of 5 stars Magnifico
I'm so glad Lisa and Janice turned me onto John Prine. This album was my first exposure to him, and it is absuloutely stunning. Read more

Published on April 30 2000 by troytron

2.0 out of 5 stars Didn't really like it
I see most of the reviewers gave this one 5 stars, but I didn't really like it. Seemed to me like Prine was trying to remake the "Missing Years" album. Read more

Published on Oct 12 1999 by Robt. W.

4.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely great!! All PRINE fans will love it! Love it!!!!
Am a long time Prine fan. This album is great. Just love "quit hollerin' at me!" John has his own unique style of music and his songs tell a story.LOVE YA, JOHN

Published on May 25 1999

5.0 out of 5 stars A Jimmy Buffet topper!
The lyrics wake up with me. What a really happy type of music. I relate it to happy times. I can't believe more people haven't been exposed to this talent.

Published on April 22 1999

5.0 out of 5 stars Prine's best of the nineties...
Having been a fan and a follwer of JP since the 70's(a stark contrast to my love for Jethro Tull and the Who), this recording by Prine is the best I've heard this decade. Read more

Published on Mar 28 1999 by trader48@bellatlantic.net

5.0 out of 5 stars Prine has hit a four bagger with this recording.
John Prine has made a fan out of this music lover, his lyrics make you take notice, and the rhythm will wake you out of your daily slumber. Read more

Published on Jan 27 1999 by C. Hanson

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