by
Jeff Burger
Nothing
in my rather gigantic CD collection means more to me than
the music of Tim Buckley; his
soaring, arresting vocals and penchant for experimenting with
the fringes of jazz-tinged folk/rock resulted in some of the
most memorable albums of the late 1960s and early 1970s.
Like his son Jeff decades later, Buckley died tragically and
young: he overdosed at 28, when hed released only a
handful of albums. Happily, though, his Complete Albums Collectionan
eight-CD box that includes a disc of works in progresshas
proven to be far from the end of the line that its title suggests
it to be: in fact, it now occupies considerably less space
on my shelf than Buckleys numerous posthumous releases.
The
latest of those is Live at the Electric Theatre Co., an extraordinary,
nearly 90-minute two-disc record of a 1968 Chicago performance
in which Buckley is backed only by conga player Carter C.C.
Collins and an unidentified bassist. Manifesto, the label
responsible for this and quite a few other Buckley releases,
says the gig captures the singer as he works out new
material, which makes it sound as if these might be
rough versions. In fact, while some of these performances
differ significantly from renditions that later appeared on
studio albums, they are polished, fully realized, and frequently
stunning.
The
program includes six Buckley originals: Gypsy Woman,
which is much more concise but no less terrific than the version
on Goodbye and Hello, his sophomore album; Sing a Song
for You, which appeared on his great third LP, Happy
Sad; Happy Time, which would be the title track
on his fourth LP; Danang, which later evolved
into a portion of Happy Sads Love from Room 109
at the Islander; the previously unknown (at least to
me) and mostly instrumental Look Out Blues; and
The Father Song, which also shows up on the aforementioned
boxs works-in-progress disc.
Among
the eight covers are three from the late Fred Neil: Dolphins,
which Buckley performed often and included on his Sefronia
LP; a rousing Looks Like Rain, which incorporates
lines from Jimmy Reeds Baby What You Want Me to
Do and seems reminiscent of Goodbye and Hello; and Improvisation
on Roll on Rosie, which runs nearly nine
minutes. Other highlights include a nearly 17-minute rendition
of the traditional Wayfaring Stranger and, somewhat
surprisingly, Johnny Cashs Big River, which
proves that Buckley could put his own stamp on just about
anything.
If
youre new to his work, you should probably start with
The Complete Albums Collection. But after youve spent
some time with that box, youre almost certain to want
his whole catalog. Whatever you do, dont miss Live at
the Electric Theatre Co. Though Buckley was still in the early
part of his brief career when he gave this performance, he
was already producing consistently stunning work.
©
2019 Jeff
Burger/Morton
report
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