Audio By Carbonatix
Artist: John Legend & The RootsTitle: Wake Up!Release date: September 21Label: Columbia
The new collaboration between neo-soul singer John Legend and ace hip-hop band The Roots is a lark dressed up as an important record, given the source material, mostly cover tunes from the Civil Rights Era.
Fans of John Legend and/or The Roots likely won’t be disappointed with this effort. It’s essentially a tribute record, and not a band one at that. But most of us would do better seeking out the original recordings of these songs by such legends as Bill Withers, Curtis Mayfield, and Nina Simone.
In fact, the single best thing that could come out of this collaboration is a new generation’s discovering the soul greats of the late 1960s and early 1970s. My biggest problem with Wake Up! — supposedly conceived during Barack Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign, which of course stirred up feelings of revolutionary thinking and fighting back among those of us who aren’t neo-cons crazies — is that it’s not angry enough. At least not angry enough to match the intensity of many of the originals covered here.
There are a couple of exceptions to these by-the-numbers renditions, though: Especially the eight-minute workout of Withers’ anti-war tune “I Can’t Write Left-Handed” is powerful and features a dirty guitar solo by The Roots’ Cap’n Kirk Douglas. Also, opening track “Compared to What” (“Trying to make it real / Compared to what”) is performed with a funky urgency missing on much of the rest of the record.
Legend’s voice is in fine form on Wake Up!, but he’s almost too silky smooth for the subject matter of these tunes. Even The Roots (who sounded so potent on their excellent How I Got Over, from earlier this summer) don’t do enough to punch up these soul classics.
This project had the potential to be a home run, but, in the end, it’s lacking the emotional muscle you’d hope from what is ostensibly a neo-protest record.
John Legend & The Roots – Our Generation
Best song: The aforementioned “I Can’t Write Left Handed”
Rotation: Medium-heavy
Deja Vu: Anything watered down.I’d rather listen to: The just-released Iggy Pop/James Williamson record Kill City.Grade: B
“Nothing Not New” is a yearlong project in which New Times editorial operations manager Jay Bennett, a 41-year-old music fan and musician, will listen only to music released in 2010. Each Monday through Friday, he will listen to one new record (no best ofs, reissues, or concert recordings) and write about it. Why? Because in the words of his editor, Martin Cizmar, he suffers from “aesthetic atrophy,” a wasting away of one’s ability to embrace new and different music as one ages. Read more about this all-too-common ailment here.
The “Nothing Not New” Archives
September 28 — No Age: Everything in Between (A-)
September 15 — Superchunk: Majesty Shredding (B+)
September 9 — JP, Chrissie, & the Fairground Boys: Fidelity! (D-)September 8 — Interpol: Interpol (C-)September 7 — Ryan Bingham & the Dead Horses: Junky Star (B)
August 31 — Sonny and the Sunsets: Tomorrow Is Alright (B)
August 26 — Ra Ra Riot: The Orchard (C-)August 25 — Dead Confederate: Sugar (D+)August 24 — Nothing Not New: Podcast #9 (A+++)August 23 — Magic Kids: Memphis (C)
August 18 — Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan: Hawk (A-)August 17 — Street Sweepers Social Club: The Ghetto Blaster EP (C+)August 16 — Lissie: Catching a Tiger (B)
August 13 — Odds ‘n’ Sods: Chely Wright, Tom Jones, Norman, and moreAugust 12 — Jimmy Eat World: Invented (C-)August 11 — Snake! Snake! Snakes!: Snake! Snake! Snakes! EP (B) August 10 — The Budos Band: The Budos Band III (A-)
August 5 — Arcade Fire: The Suburbs (B)August 3 — Wavves: King of the Beach (B+)
July 29 — Odds ‘n’ Sods: Cowboy Junkies, Winnie Cooper, and moreJuly 28 — The Goodnight Loving: Supper Club (A-)July 27 — Menomena: Mines (B+)July 26 — Best Coast: Crazy for You (D+)
July 23 — Vitamin String Quartet: Performs Lady Gaga (C)July 22 — The Books: The Way Out (B+)July 21 — Francis and the Lights: It’ll Be Better (C)July 20 — Secret Cities: Pink Graffiti (D)July 19 — Sun Kil Moon: Admiral Fell Promises (C-)
July 16 — Odds ‘n’ Sods: Liz Phair, Steel Train, Kylie Minogue, and moreJuly 15 — Mystery Jets: Serotonin (B+)July 14 — Authority Zero: Stories of Survival (C+)July 13 — Danger Mouse & Sparklehorse: Dark Night of the Soul (B+)July 12 — Crowded House: Intriguer (B)
July 8 — Ty Segall: Melted (B+)July 7 — Pierce the Veil: Selfish Machines (D-)July 6 — 13 Must-Hear Songs from the First Half of 2010
July 2 — Katzenjammer: Le Pop (B)June 30 — Wolf Parade: Expo 86 (B-)June 29 — Scissor Sisters: Night Work (B+)
June 24 — Foals: Total Life Forever (D+)June 23 — Pernice Brothers: Goodbye, Killer (A-)June 22 — The Roots: How I Got Over (B+)June 21 — Danzig: Deth Red Sabaoth (D)
June 18 — The Chemical Brothers: Further (B+)June 17 — Eyes Set to Kill: Broken Frames (C)June 16 — Devo: Something for Everybody (B+)June 15 — The Gaslight Anthem: American Slang (C-)June 14 — Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers: Mojo (C)
June 11 — Odds ‘n’ Sods: The Dig, The Cringe, Delta Spirit, Stereo Total, and moreJune 10 — Gemma Ray: It’s a Shame About Gemma Ray (A-)June 9 — Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti: Before Today (B)June 8 — Against Me!: White Crosses (C)June 7 — Blitzen Trapper: Destroyer of the Void (B-)
June 4 — The Melvins: The Bride Screamed Murder (B-)June 3 — Crystal Castles: Crystal Castles II (B-)June 2 — The Cool Kids: Tacklebox (B-)
May 27 — What Cheer? Brigade: We Blow You Suck (D)May 26 — Stone Tempe Pilots: Stone Temple Pilots (C)May 25 — Karen Elson: The Ghost Who Walks (C+)May 24 — Damien Jurado: Saint Bartlett (B)
May 21 — Woven Bones: In and Out and Back Again (B-)May 20 — Band of Horses: Infinite Arms (B-)May 19 — Sleigh Bells: Treats (D-)May 18 — The Black Keys: Brothers (B+) May 17 — LCD Soundsystem: This Is Happening (A-)
May 14 — Odds ‘n’ Sods: CocoRosie, Natalie Merchant, The Sadies, and moreMay 13 — Male Bonding: Nothing Hurts (B)May 12 — Flying Lotus: Cosmogramma (B-)May 11 — The Dead Weather: Sea of Cowards (A)May 10 — The National: High Violet (B+)
May 7 — Shapiro: Shapiro (C)May 6 — Gogol Bordello: Trans-Continental Hustle (C-)May 5 — Broken Social Scene: Forgiveness Rock Record (A-)May 4 — The New Pornographers: Together (B-)May 3 — The Hold Steady: Heaven Is Whenever (A-)
April 30 — Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings: I Learned the Hard Way (A)April 29 — Hole: Nobody’s Daughter (D+)April 28 — Odds ‘n’ Sods: Toro y Moi, Merle Haggard, Freedy Johnston, and moreApril 27 — Unnatural Helpers: Cracked Love & Other Drugs (B+)April 26 — Harlan T. Bobo: Sucker (A-)
April 23 — Roky Erickson and Okkervil River: True Love Cast Out All Evil (A-)April 22 — Caribou: Swim (D)April 21 — The Apples in Stereo: Travellers in Space and Time (C-)April 20 — Jakob Dylan: Women + Country (D+)April 19 — Cornershop: Judy Sucks a Lemon for Breakfast (C)
April 16 — Frightened Rabbit: The Winter of Mixed Drinks (B+)April 15 — Coheed and Cambria: Year of the Black Rainbow (D-)April 14 — Foxy Shazam: Foxy Shazam (D, later changed to a B)April 13 — MGMT: Congratulations (B+)April 12 — Odds ‘n’ Sods: Robyn Hitchcock, RJD2, Scorpions, and More
April 9 — Murder by Death: Good Morning, Magpie (B-)April 8 — Harlem: Hippies (C+)April 7 — Slow Club: Yeah, So (B)April 6 — Black Francis: NonStopErotik (B+)April 5 — Growing: Pumps! (F)
April 2 — Holly Golightly and the Brokeoffs: Medicine County (B)April 1 — Dum Dum Girls: I Will Be (A-)March 31 — The Dillinger Escape Plan: Option Paralysis (B+)March 30 — Local Natives: Gorilla Manor (B)March 29 — The Bird and the Bee: Interpreting the Masters: Hall & Oates (C)
March 26 — Eddy Current Suppression Ring: Rush to Relax (C+)March 25 — Let’s Wrestle: In the Court of the Wrestling Let’s (B)March 24 — Goldfrapp: Head First (D)March 23 — She & Him: Volume 2 (A-)March 22 — Broken Bells: Broken Bells (C+)
March 19 — Locksley: Be In Love (B)March 18 — jj: jj no. 3 (C-)March 17 — Xiu Xiu: Dear God, I Hate Myself (D+)March 16 — Drive By Truckers: The Big To-Do (B-)March 15 — April Smith and the Great Picture Show: Songs for a Sinking Ship (C)
March 12 — The Morning Benders: Big Echo (C+)March 11 — Black Rebel Motorcycle Club: Beat the Devil’s Tattoos (B)March 10 — Acrassicauda: Only the Dead See the End of War (C-)March 9 — Titus Andronicus: The Monitor (B+)March 8 — Ted Leo and the Pharmacists: The Brutalist Bricks (A)
March 5 — Liars: Sisterworld (A-)March 4 — Gorillaz: Plastic Beach (A-)March 3 — Johnny Cash: American VI: Ain’t No Grave (B+)March 2 — High on Fire: Snakes for the Divine (C)March 1 — Joanna Newsom: Have One on Me (C)
Feb. 26 — Freeway & Jake One: The Stimulus Package (D)Feb. 25 — Past Lives: Tapestry of Webs (B-)Feb. 24 — Shout Out Louds: Work (B)Feb. 23 — Brian Jonestown Massacre: Who Killed Sgt. Pepper? (B+)Feb. 22 — Shearwater: The Golden Archipelago (D+)
Feb. 19 — The Strange Boys: Be Brave (B+)Feb. 18 — Tindersticks: Falling Down a Mountain (A)Feb. 17 — Lightspeed Champion: Life Is Sweet! Nice to Meet You (C-)Feb. 16 — Adam Green: Minor Love (B-)Feb. 15 — Juliana Hatfield: Peace & Love (B+)
Feb. 12 — Massive Attack: Heligoland (C-)Feb. 11 — The Watson Twins: Talking to You, Talking to Me (C-)Feb. 10 — Hot Chip: One Life Stand (B+)Feb. 9 — You Say Party! We Say Die!: XXXX (B+)Feb. 8 — Allison Moorer: Crows (B)
Feb. 5 — Joe Pug: Messenger (C)Feb. 4 — The Soft Pack: The Soft Pack (A)Feb. 3 — Polysics: Absolute Polysics (B-)Feb. 2 — Pierced Arrows: Descending Shadows (A-)Feb. 1 — The Brunettes: Paper Doll (B-)
Jan. 29 — Basia Bulat: Heart of My Own (C)Jan. 28 — Priestess: Prior to the Fire (B)Jan. 27 — The Magnetic Fields: Realism (B)Jan. 26 — Four Tet: There Is Love in You (D)Jan. 25 — Delphic: Acolyte (C+)
Jan. 22 — The Hot Rats: Turn Ons (B+)Jan. 21 — Los Campesinos!: Romance Is Boring (A-)Jan. 20 — Midlake: The Courage of Others (D-)Jan. 19 — Laura Veirs: July Flame (B+)Jan. 18 — Beach House: Teen Dream (C)
Jan. 15 — Charlotte Gainsbourg: IRM (B)Jan. 14 — OK Go: Of the Blue Colour of the Sky (D)Jan. 13 — Eels: End Times (A-)Jan. 12 — Spoon: Transference (B)Jan. 11 — Editors: In This Light and On This Evening (D+)
Jan. 8 — Surfer Blood: Astro Coast (B+)Jan. 7 — Yeasayer: Odd Blood (C-)Jan. 6 — Cold War Kids: Behave Yourself EP (B+)Jan. 5 — Vampire Weekend: Contra (D+)Jan. 4 — Texas Tornados: Está Bueno! (B)
Jan. 1 — Scanners: Submarine (B-)
