Wreckless Eric & Amy Rigby
Stiff Records, 2008
...I think this officially came out last Tuesday, but it was not an easy record to find. I can't tell if it has American distribution, or if it is imported. It's worth tracking down, though.
Eric has always been one of my songwriting/recording heroes, a status probably having something to do with him being one of the first people who made great records that I met in person. It was just once, just for a half hour, but he was opinionated, insightful, charming...I was 16, and it made an impression. His Stiff-era '70s hits ("Whole Wide World," "Semaphore Signals," "Take the K.A.S.H.," "Veronica," etc.) still sound marvelous: grubby, lascivious, fun, but undeniably well-constructed and catchy.
His post-Stiff stuff has been perennially under-rated, and is difficult to come by, which is a shame considering the quality of bands like the Len Bright Combo and the heart and soul of albums like Bungalo High, The Donovan of Trash, and 12 O'Clock Stereo. Buy 'em all, if and when you can find them. If you're in Atlanta, most of the used shops will have a copy of the last one, as it was released on an Atlanta label. It may be the best of the three, too!
Eric has moved to France, and somehow managed to win the heart of singer/songwriter Amy Rigby. They were married in a French civil ceremony recently, and this album is a wonderfully understated set that mixes new songs from Eric and Amy with songs they wrote together. It's not pillow-talk, by any means, but the two compliment each other really well. Amy's winsome wit and classic pop-song gifts elevate the inherent pop in Eric's tunes, while Eric's DIY grit make her songs sound tougher, more heartfelt...
The album is a home-recorded affair, but seemingly a bit more mid-fi-approaching-hi-fi than previous Eric projects...Amy's influence? Old-school rhythm boxes keep the beat mostly, over which the pair lay down Eric's Stonesy electric playing, some great garage organ, some strummed acoustic, and even some synth and found-sound-collage business.
Songs are pretty damn strong...Amy's "Taste of the Keys" is a heartbreaking number delivered from the point of view of a tourist-trap waitress ("...all our specials come topped with cheese..."), while her "First Mate Rigby" is a wonderful dialog, opening with:
Amy: I'm a girl with past full of boys with a past.
Eric: I'm a man with a plan to economize.
Amy: I got baggage to haul and a card for the phone.
Eric: I got bags of my own underneath my eyes.
...gloriously fuzzy chorus.
In fine mettle, Eric throws in the provocative, bittersweet "The Downside of Being a Fuck-Up" and tearful recollection "Another Drive-In Saturday." Together, they pen the hopeful opening "Here Comes My Ship," a nifty Pet Sounds knock-off called ""Trotters,"" and the great pop song "Round," which is followed by a cover of Johnny Cash's "I Still Miss Someone," which closes the disk.
Go to www.wrecklesseric.com for tour dates...and then go to the shows and buy this record from them, so they can get back to France with some money!
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