March-April 2008

JACKSON BROWNE BRINGS THE MUSIC TO THE FRONT

ARTIST: JACKSON BROWNE

TITLE: SOLO ACOUSTIC - VOL. 2

By Russ Paris

JACKSON BROWNE SOLO ACOUSTIC VOL. 2 (released on March 4, 2008 on Inside Recordings) is the second in a series of solo acoustic albums by the Rock-n-Roll Hall of Famer. Though with new songs, the format is identical to the first volume, released in 2005. Vol. 2 showcases the same sense of intimacy and live energy at Jackson's recent solo acoustic concerts: he's singing to you.

The collection begins with a stripped-down version of Never Stop from his 2002 album, The Naked Ride Home, with Jackson on guitar. The acoustic arrangement emphasizes the words and it comes across as a beautiful love song. When Jackson sings “And when you make me smile, I'm the richest man I know,” you believe it.

In the introduction to the next song you can hear the audience screaming out to Jackson. He laughingly pretends he can't quite hear one of the comments, when it's obvious he did, and he jokes about all the guitars he has on stage by saying how Willie Nelson has played the same guitar for 50 years and never makes mistakes.

The second song is an acoustic version of The Night Inside Me, also from The Naked Ride Home. Again, Jackson is on guitar with an arrangement that puts the emphasis on the lyrics. That’s what acoustic albums do. However, the arrangements often seem very complex in their simplicity.

Another interlude is followed by Enough of the Night from 1989's World In Motion album. While not one of Jackson's more popular releases, listening to him perform this song alone on guitar will make you want give that old CD a listen. Even in an album that many consider a low point of his career, there is some incredible songwriting:

But you were never the princess

More like the queen of the thieves

And my heart was never more than one of the many a queen receives

Jackson's acoustic version of Something Fine (still on guitar) is as tight as any version I've ever heard. It's an amazing thing that a song written more then 35 years ago can still be poignant and contemporary. Jackson's voice has grown in richness since the original recording made in 1971, infusing the song with a sense of revelation and awe that he must have felt at that original encounter. You can feel it in his voice.

Sky Blue And Black (from 1993's I'm Alive album) has become one of Jackson's great anthems. Jackson plays keyboard on this one. Anyone who appreciates music should hear this song:

And I'd have fought the world for you

If I thought that you wanted me to

Or put aside what was true or untrue

If I'd known that's what you needed

What you needed me to do

Jackson's voice isn't perfect on this new collection. Even without the crowd screaming out requests, we would still know this was a live album due to its realness and warmth, which are often lost in studio albums that are cleaned up to what is often thought of as “perfection.” Listen to the real warmth and vibrancy of Jackson's voice in this track and you'll remember why you always liked his music.

In The Shape Of A Heart must be one of Jackson's personal favorites—he has performed it consistently at his recent shows. The song comes from Lives In The Balance (1986), which Rolling Stone Magazine rated as one of the Top 100 albums of the 80s. The single only reached #70 on Billboard Magazine's Hot 100 Singles Chart, but it did hit the Top 10 on the Adult Contemporary Chart. It should have been a bigger hit, though this version, with Jackson back on guitar, adds little to the original.

Alive In The Word from the Looking East album (1996) was always one of Jackson Browne's more underrated songs of hope and redemption:

I want to live in the world, not behind some wall

I want to live in the world, where I will hear if another voice should call

To the prisoner inside me

To the captive of my doubt

Who among his fantasies harbors the dream of breaking out

And taking his chances

Alive in the world

The song urges involvement and living, acknowledging the difficulties but reminding us of the positives.

Casino Nation (with Jackson back on guitar) is another song from The Naked Ride Home. The song laments the direction our country has gone in recent years and you can almost taste the anger in Jackson's voice, imploring us all to stand and do something about it.

All Good Things is another one from the I'm Alive album. By this point in the CD, there is a feeling that Jackson programmed a sense of order into the tracks, starting with songs that talk of looking back, and maybe moving ahead, to songs of love and hope, to songs about the struggle to make our world a better place. One gets a sense that this is his final song before the end of the show he's performing for you in your living room.

Somebody's Baby still ranks as Jackson Browne's biggest hit single, peaking at #7 in 1982 from the soundtrack to Fast Times at Ridgemont High. Jackson's voice struggles to hit the high notes here, but it's a nice version of the song that might even appeal to those who didn’t appreciate the song in the original version.

Another introduction brings more interchanges between Jackson and the audience, loud and clear enough that some audience members may be able to hear themselves. It's like listening to a quality bootleg—the way you'd want it to sound.

Redneck Friend, originally from 1973's For Everyman album, still holds up 35 years later, but so does Jackson. In the introduction he sounds reluctant to play this one, but once he gets going he's obviously enjoying himself.

The last introduction gives a hint of what is really going on at his solo acoustic shows. He asks for requests and people scream them out. He talks directly to the audience, but he picks the songs he wants to perform—sometimes waiting until he hears the right one.

My Stunning Mystery Companion (The Naked Ride Home) is a perfect ending for this collection, bringing it full circle. Where Never Stop is a love song with it's eye on the past and a wink to the future, this one is a love song clearly looking ahead. This is a deceptively simple guitar and vocal arrangement that fits the nature of the song much better than the original release.

Overall, I expect that some fans will initially complain about the choice of songs: not enough hits. But some were already on Solo Acoustic, Vol. 1 (These Days, The Pretender, Take It Easy), and hopefully some are being saved for Solo Acoustic, Vol 3. Hit songs like Doctor My Eyes and Running On Empty have not yet made an appearance in this series.

Still, it is very rare that a live album is able to capture the true energy and vibe of a live performance the way Jackson Browne's Solo Acoustic CDs have. They are both essential for any fan of Jackson Browne's music, but also indispensable to those who want to study songwriting by a master craftsman. This is the way music should be done.

Russ Paris, an avid music collector, and his wife have been the hosts of Russ & Julie's House Concert for the past 12 years. Russ is also a founder and board member of Folk Alliance Region West (FAR-West) and runs a number of award winning music related websites.

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