Hello everyone. Happy summer and I hope you're doing well. I decided to come back by filling out so retro album reviews. I'm going to start with one of my favorite singer-songwriters, Warren Zevon.
In this post, I'm going to cover both his early "Wanted Dead or Alive" album (as "Zevon") and his self-titled hit from 1976. Why two albums? Because there's not much to say about his first album, but obviously it needs to be covered simply out of the significance of being his first album and I want this post to be more than 4 sentences long. Let's get right into it now.
"Wanted Dead Or Alive" - Zevon (1969)
"Wanted Dead or Alive" was released in 1969 to the sound of one-hand clapping, as Warren himself would put it. The album today acts as a relic of rough, early Zevon tunes for the hardcore fans of his work to seek out after they filled out their collection of his albums. During this period Warren wanted to do everything himself. He want to be the band, write everything, produce everything, but the problem was he wasn't the fully matured, realized genius he would later become.
Kim Fowley was set to produce the project, but ended up leaving after conflicts with Warren. He would remark in the book "I'll Sleep When I'm Dead: The Dirty Life and Times of Warren Zevon":
"[Warren] wanted to play all the instruments himself. He wouldn't listen to anybody. I wasn't trying to produce him because you really couldn't produce Warren, at least not in those days, but I was trying to help him make a record that might sell more than ten copies, all purchased by his friends. But, he didn't listen to anyone about anything, and one day I just walked in thinking I'd had enough."
If you listen to this album, you can hear that its a bit of a mess and all over the place. Warren lacked focus. In every song, it sounds like he was trying to figure out what type of album he wanted to make and with each vocal track it sounds like he was still trying to figure out what type of personality he wanted to project through his music.
The stand out songs are the title track (not written by Warren) and a true Warren Zevon solo penned song called "Tule's Blues". The latter would probably be my favorite on this album, however, its lack of focus makes it a difficult listen. The album does close with a pretty cool instrumental track called "Fiery Emblems", though. Not cool enough to save it, though.
Wanted Dead or Album is Warren's first album and also my least favorite album of his. As a hardcore fan, I thought I would find a lot of enjoyment digging this up, but my reaction to it today is the same as my reaction to it when I first heard it. It's simply not a good record. I give this record a 3.5/10
"Warren Zevon" (1976)
Alright, let's get serious now. This is an incredible record. Seven years after his long-forgotten debut, many people consider this Warren's true debut as a music artist. The album is peppered with catchy rock tracks, ballads and that 1970's country-rock flavor that was coming out of Los Angeles at the time. The soft piano of "Frank and Jesse James" starts off the album. One of my personal favorites that turns into a rocking track. "Hasten Down The Wind" is a classic ballad. "Poor, Poor Pitiful Me" is a great rock track. "The French Inhaler" is one of Warren's finest musical moments in his entire career in my opinion... and that's just the first half of the record.
"Carmelita" is another fan-favorite for relaxed guitar strummers. "I'll Sleep When I'm Dead" would become one of Warren's more well-known songs and a live favorite early in his career. Possibly the best song is saved for last. "Desperados Under The Eaves" is a great signature Zevon piano ballad with a string intro that mimics the album's opening track to round it out. The line "and if California slides into the ocean like the mystics and statistics say it will... I predict this motel will be standing until I've paid my bill" is a great line and where you can hear Warren as a fully realized artist who knows who he wants to be. What kind of music he wants to write and what type of personality he wants to project to the public unlike the previous album. If I had to sum up Warren's personality with one lyric, I would say that one is perfect.
Warren was more open to play well with others on this release. Friend and accomplished songwriter out of Los Angeles, Jackson Browne produced the record. The album also features a lot of big guest appearances, many of which are now legends including Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham of Fleetwood Mac. Don Henley and Glenn Frey of the Eagles. Carl Wilson of the Beach Boys and many others.
Without wanting to do everything himself, Warren was able to concentrate on the songwriting. All these great songs were written by Warren himself. This record is one of my favorites in my collection and the 2008 deluxe 2 disc collection with demos and outtakes is a must-have, too.
I said "Wanted..." was my least favorite Warren Zevon record. Is this one my favorite? Maybe. Sometimes I think it is. If this were his true debut, I would say its one of the best debut records of all time. When I'm done reviewing all of these records, I think I will rank his studio albums and try to decide of a favorite. The problem with that is whenever is my favorite on that given day could be my 2nd or 3rd favorite the next day. I don't know. I'll think about it. For now I'll stick to the reviews.
I give "Warren Zevon" a 9/10 review. Simply an incredible release. The album sounds great. It is focused. The lyrics are great. The music is great. A hell of a reset for Warren's career. However, you know the big one is coming soon... Yep. Aaahhhooo!
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