ROCK
"Look at me for the very last time/I've climbed so high/I've got no place left to climb/And I know no tomorrow." These lyrics, from the the deeply personal "Sunset Strip," one of 12 songs on Courtney Love's much delayed solo debut, America's Sweetheart, are somewhat disturbing given the rocker's recent troubles. (Last fall Love attempted to break into the home of her ex-boyfriend, Sweetheart producer James Barber, overdosed on painkillers and made a suicide threat after losing custody of Frances Bean, her 11-year-old daughter with late husband Kurt Cobain.) But Love's much publicized problems give an added poignancy to this, her first recording since Hole disbanded after releasing 1998's Celebrity Skin. When she sings "You've gotta ride that black horse baby/Through the depths of Hell that I've been" on the plaintive ballad "Never Gonna Be the Same," her pain is, sadly, very real. That can make Sweetheart a difficult listen at times. It's hard not to wince when Love, who was once accused of taking heroin while pregnant with Frances Bean and had a recent stint in rehab, sings about the joys of drugs on the blistering first single, "Mono," and in particular on "All the Drugs": "With all all [sic] of my money/It doesn't feel as good/As the drugs." Musically, although grunge's glory days are long over, Love sticks close to the Seattle sound that put her on the map. While that brings a bracing energy to tracks like the ripping rocker "Hello," one can't help but wish that Love had evolved more artistically after all this time. Linda Perry, the former 4 Non Blondes member who cowrote nine of this disc's numbers, fails to make the same impact here that she did on her songs with Christina Aguilera and especially Pink. One suspects, however, that Love was too strong-willed to change her tune much. She may be America's Sweetheart, but she's nobody's puppet.
Five for Fighting
POP
CRITIC'S CHOICE
After delivering a pop knockout with the 2001 hit single "Superman (It's Not Easy)," Five for Fighting packs plenty of punch on its third album. Five, essentially the one-man show of singer-songwriter John Ondrasik, produces a grown-up work rich in melody, lyrical depth and solid musicianship. Take the first single, "100 Years." It's a poignant piano-based tune that traces the course of an ordinary man's life over four minutes, capturing how time passes "when you only got 100 years to live." The song's well-crafted message won't be lost on listeners from 15 to 99. On another of the disc's highlights, the wistful ballad "Dying," Ondrasik, with an aching voice reminiscent of Dave Matthews, confesses, "I'm dying to live without you again." He also displays a sardonic wit on the lilting "Disneyland," singing, "I don't know and I don't care that it's a small world." The no-frills production and acoustic-centered accompaniment keep the focus squarely on Ondrasik, where it belongs.
Kenny Chesney
COUNTRY
Jimmy Buffett seems to have rubbed off on Kenny Chesney, who fills this follow-up to 2002's triple-platinum No Shoes, No Shirt, No Problems with reggae-flavored rhapsodizing about balmy weather and beaches. His obsession with all things tropical is a little disconcerting: Nashville isn't the Bahamas. But those songs are nothing compared to "The Woman with You," which is the country-music equivalent of cross-dressing. The tune, about a career woman who longs for a more old-fashioned existence, would be a nice turn for Faith Hill or Shania Twain. But it's hardly convincing to hear a man sing, "I've been jugglin', strugglin', closin' big deals/Dancin' backwards in high heels."
Far more appropriate is the clever "Being Drunk's a Lot Like Loving You." Chesney also profitably remakes Dave Loggins's 1974 hit "Please Come to Boston," suggesting that the singer should keep his thoughts form straying to the Caribbean.
Kylie Minogue
DANCE POP
Kylie Minogue brought back '80s dance-pop with her infectious 2002 international smash "Can't Get You Out of My Head." The Aussie diva continues to party like it's 1985, with mixed results, on her latest. The new-wavish "Secret (Take You Home)" borrows a bit from Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam's 1985 club classic "I Wonder If I Take You Home." Elsewhere she quotes from INXS' 1988 hit "New Sensation" on "Sweet Music" and Dead or Alive's 1985 gem "You Spin Me 'Round (Like a Record)" on "Red Blooded Woman." Meanwhile, the glossy "Promises" sounds like an outtake from Madonna's True Blue album. As with much of '80s dance-pop, though, there is a cheesy quality to these synth-driven tracks that makes them feel dated at times. And the lyrics are about as lightweight as Minogue's wisp of a voice. Still, when she is at her best, as on the hypnotic, sensual "Slow," you won't be able to get Kylie out of your head.
Phantom Planet
ROCK
Phantom Planet has been best known for its Hollywood connections: Actor Jason Schwartzman (Rushmore) was the group's drummer until his departure last year, and the band's song "California," from 2002's The Guest album, serves as the opening theme to the FOX drama The O.C. On its latest, the L.A.-based quintet sets out to make more noise with a garage-rock disc. Problem is, they sound too much like the Strokes on routine raw rockers like "The Happy Ending" and first single "Big Brat." It doesn't help that lead singer Alexander Greenwald's snarl at times seems to be a ripoff of Strokes frontman Julian Casablancas.
Twista
RAP
Twista's hip-hop hit "Slow Jamz" is one of those singles that grabs you by the ear the first time you hear it. An ode to R&B love ballads known as "slow jams," it features a sped-up sample from Luther Vandross's 1981 version of "A House Is Not a Home" and salutes such other bedroom-soul staples as Marvin Gaye, Anita Baker and Earth, Wind and Fire. "Let me get your sheets wet/Listening to Keith Sweat," raps Twista over the bump-and-grind groove. There is nothing else on the Chicago rapper's third disc as catchy or clever as "Slow Jamz," however, and the overlong CD has its share of filler, such as the tired "Pimp On." Still, with his rapid-fire rhymes, Twista keeps the fun factor high on party cuts like the liquor-loving "Drinks" and the Nellyesque "Badunkadunk," a humorous paean to big booties. Guest appearances by Ludacris, R. Kelly and R&B singer Anthony Hamilton add flavor to this Kamikaze.
Valentine's Day is just around the corner (Feb. 14, in case you forgot). If your Cupid could use a little help getting in the mood, here are some recently released CD compilations that will add fire and desire to your love thang.
50 FIRST DATES The soundtrack to the new Adam Sandler-Drew Barrymore comedy, which opens Feb. 13, features popular '80s love songs remade with a reggae twist. Wayne Wonder puts a dancehall spin on the Thompson Twins' "Hold Me Now," Ziggy Marley jump-starts the Cars' "Drive," and UB40 breathes new life into the Police's classic "Every Breath You Take."
AL GREEN: THE ABSOLUTE BEST A two-CD retrospective shows why Green is still the make-out man. In addition to such timeless gems as "Let's Stay Together" and "Love and Happiness," Disc 1 features two songs previously unreleased in the States, while Disc 2 includes the romance-ready "Here I Am (Come and Take Me)" and "Call Me (Come Back Home)."
LOVE IS COMING BACK Some things never go out of style, like these heart-tugging pop-jazz standards, including Sarah Vaughan's smoky "The Nearness of You," Ella Fitzgerald's flirty "I Can't Give You Anything But Love, Baby" and Mel Tormé's velvety "P.S. I Love You." Modern-day jazzman Peter Cincotti also pipes in with the swinging "You Stepped Out of a Dream."
LET'S GET IT ON This collection of oh-so-smooth soul features such R&B chestnuts as the Isley Brothers' "Between the Sheets," Smokey Robinson's "Quiet Storm" and Boyz II Men's "I'll Make Love to You." But the song that really warms things up is Rick James and Teena Marie's 1981 duet "Fire & Desire," which still bums with red-hot passion after all these years.
- Contributors:
- Chuck Arnold,
- Ralph Novak.
Saved by the Bell Reunion
The hookups, the meltdowns, the memoires
The case reveals what was really going on what they think of each other now!
