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Wainwright’s vocals imbue the material with a mixture of world-weariness, compassion and delight, qualities that didn’t loom large in the emotional lexicon of his younger self.
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With the help of producer Joe Henry, Loudon Wainwright III has been excavating his own past, and he’s disgorged some hibernating gems from his first four albums, revisiting ghosts that haunted him 35 years ago.
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Wainwright's voice sounds better than ever, adding the weight of history to songs that were poignant to begin with.
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Under The RadarRe-recording the spare material with musical strongmen Greg Leisz, Patrick Warren, David Piltch, and Jay Bellerose replaces some of the lo-fi grain of the originals with a stately grace. [Fall 2008, p.85]
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There are great finds--'Man Who Couldn't Cry'--but some bones are best unpolished.
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Recovery revisits Wainwright's back catalog and finds new meaning in the tunes he wrote as a young man.
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Q MagazineProducer Joe Henry has softened the originals' raw edges without compromising their acidic content. [Oct 2008, p.152]
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MojoIt's hard to love anyone as self-absorbed as Wainwright, but it's impossible not to admire his ability to craft enduringly engaging music. [Nov 2008, p.112]
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Since Wainwright is such a clever and insightful lyricist, even his weakest material is worth a listen, so Recovery is never unpleasant, but the song selection is unjustifiably uneven.
User score distribution:
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Positive: 5 out of 9
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Mixed: 1 out of 9
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Negative: 3 out of 9
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Apr 21, 2011
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EricC.Jan 10, 2009
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jimr.Aug 28, 2008Yeah, a couple of misses, but if you are a fan it is a fine keeper.