Monthly Archives: September 2009

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Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

meatballsParking! Purchasing! Sitting! Watching! Laughing! Reviewing!

Sorry, got carried away there. Slipped into Flint Lockwood mode for a minute. He’s the charming hero (voiced by SNL‘s Bill Hader) at the center of Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, one of the nicest surprises I’ve had at the movies in awhile. Lockwood is a wildly creative and misunderstood inventor whose mind is in constant hyperdrive as he flits around his homemade laboratory, accessible via hydraulically-lifted port-a-potty, barking out gerunds describing his activity.

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Song of the Day #428: ‘South Texas Girl’ – Lyle Lovett

notbiglargeFour years after his worst album, Lyle Lovett returned to form with a new collection featuring his Large Band and titled It’s Not Big It’s Large. While this album didn’t reach the heights of his early work, it is definitely in the same ballpark and it’s a sign that Lovett may have righted the ship after more than a decade of listing.

My one complaint about It’s Not Big It’s Large is that it’s a deceptively modest affair. It boasts 12 tracks but one is an instrumental, one is a cover and one is a reprise of an earlier song. After so long in the wilderness, I would have preferred Lovett deliver something meatier, but that’s nitpicking.

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Song of the Day #427: ‘San Antonio Girl’ – Lyle Lovett

donttolerateIn 2003, seven years after The Road to Ensenada, Lyle Lovett finally released another album of original material. Unfortunately, that album — My Baby Don’t Tolerate — was a major disappointment.

Granted, there is really no such thing as a “bad Lyle Lovett album” — that’s just not a concept that computes. But if everything can be ranked, and the presence of a best necessitates the presence of a worst… well, allow me to introduce you to Lyle Lovett’s worst album.

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Song of the Day #426: ‘You Can’t Resist It’ – Lyle Lovett

liveintexasA year after Step Inside This House, Lyle Lovett continued to frustrate fans by releasing a live album. Don’t get me wrong… this is a fine live album. But three years after The Road to Ensenada, I for one was ready for some new Lyle.

While the performances on Live in Texas are not by the actual Large Band, they have the same sound and general makeup — horns, strings, gospel-style backing vocals, and Lovett as the confident ringleader.

I was lucky enough to see him in concert backed by this lineup and Live in Texas is a fair representation of the wonderful concert I saw.

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Song of the Day #425: ‘Bears’ – Lyle Lovett

stepinsideI hope I’m not being too harsh when I say that The Road to Ensenada was Lyle Lovett’s last great album. He’s made several good ones since then, but nothing that compares to his output from 1986-1996.

In fact, Lovett released six full-length albums of original material during his first decade as a recording artist and has released only two in the 13 years since. He has filled the rest of that time with soundtrack appearances, covers albums and a live release. I often wonder about those bursts of creativity that give way to long dry spells, and Lovett is another example. I don’t necessarily suspect that his best work is behind him, but I wonder if he still possesses the creative fire that led to that extraordinary run.

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