Jenny Lewis has taken a couple of stabs at greatness over the eight years of her solo career.
2008’s Rabbit Fur Coat is a folk rock pleasure, charming if ultimately forgettable. Acid Tongue, released in 2008, was a more ambitious effort, dabbling in blues rock and featuring a duet with frequent collaborator Elvis Costello. But it, too, had trouble sticking.
When I ordered those four new albums a week ago, I didn’t expect my runaway favorite to be Jenny Lewis’ The Voyager.
Don’t get me wrong, I like Jenny Lewis. Her first two solo albums, Rabbit-Fur Coat and Acid Tongue, are sharp, melodic and ambitious. But neither really grabbed me and shook me the way this latest record has.
The Random iTunes Fairy chose an interesting pair of songs this weekend. While yesterday’s track showcased the importance of the single, today’s selection is all about the deep cut.
The final track on Jenny Lewis’ 2005 album Rabbit-Fur Coat, ‘It Wasn’t Me’ is in no danger of winding up on the radio. But it’s a lovely little closing track, one that deserves to be heard. It’s the antithesis of a song like The Corrs’ ‘Breathless’ that was born to wind up on one of those NOW compilations.
Jenny Lewis performed this version of ‘Pretty Bird,’ from her lovely Acid Tongue album, earlier this year on Elvis Costello’s Showtime show Spectacle.
First, allow me to offer a belated plug for Spectacle, which ended its run after two seasons. Costello proved a fine interviewer of a host of talented artists and the live performances were stellar across the board. Costello’s own backing band, including former Attractions Steve Nieve and Pete Thomas, sat in on most performances and the mix of him covering his guest’s music and them showcasing their own made for riveting TV.
I’m taking another break between Elvis Costello weeks, but he’s managed to sneak in anyway. Today’s song, a snappy number from Jenny Lewis’ latest album Acid Tongue, is a duet with Costello. And today’s video is a live version of the song from The Late Show with David Letterman, where Costello has always found a home.
I haven’t returned to Acid Tongue (or Lewis’ last album Rabbit-Fur Coat) much since I bought them, but when I do it’s always rewarding. She’s a talented writer and an expressive singer with a sensibility that spans genres and ends up very much her own thing.
Meet Me In Montauk 