Thursday, May 19, 2011

Thea Gilmore: John Wesley Harding ? review

(Fullfill)

"Should one attempt to reinterpret a 40-year-old, somewhat legendary piece of work? Probably not," writes English folkie Thea Gilmore. Nonetheless, as Bob Dylan's 70th birthday approaches, she has covered his album John Wesley Harding in its entirety as a tribute. The man himself will probably be tickled by her faithfulness to the original's sense of solitude; reflectiveness is something Gilmore does well, in a voice that becomes more beautifully burnished by the year. But even armed with that voice, and a country-folk band who respond with sensitivity to her every inflection, what can she add? There are some triumphs: accompanied by finger-picked guitar on I Am a Lonesome Hobo, she's a lost soul; the autumnal weariness of Dear Landlord is equally affecting. But All Along the Watchtower is sleepy and slow, negating the lyric's urgency, and so it goes. Gilmore is always worth hearing, but this one is for completists only.

Rating: 3/5


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