Popular Jukebox Songs

Posted in Jukebox Machines on January 27, 2012

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Popular Jukebox Songs

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Jukebox! Party Songs

$13.85

Jukebox! Party Songs

Jukebox

$11.98

Eight years is a long time in almost any artist's career, but in Cat Power's case, it's an even more sizable gulf, as Chan Marshall's collections of other people's songs reflect. Released in 2000, The Covers Record found her becoming an ever more nuanced performer, tempering the rawness and intensity of her earlier albums with a lighter approach. Arriving in 2008, Jukebox reaffirms what a polished artist she's become, especially since her Memphis soul homage The Greatest. But where The Greatest sometimes bordered on slick, Jukebox's blend of country, soul, blues, and jazz feels lived-in and natural. Marshall recorded this set with her touring act, the Dirty Delta Blues Band, featuring some of indie rock's finest players, including her longtime drummer, the Dirty Three's Jim White -- who gives even the quietest moments vitality -- as well as Jon Spencer Blues Explosion's Judah Bauer and Chavez's Matt Sweeney, so it's not surprising that the album often plays like an especially well-recorded concert. However, some of the session legends she worked with on The Greatest make guest appearances, including Teenie Hodges and Spooner Oldham. Oldham's song for Janis Joplin, "A Woman Left Lonely," appears here, and the original's sophisticated yet earthy sound is one of the album's biggest influences. As on The Covers Record, Marshall makes bold choices. She citifies Hank Williams' "Ramblin' Man" (switched to "Ramblin' [Wo]Man" here), turning it slinky and smoky with spacious drums and rippling Rhodes; despite the very different surroundings, the song's desperate loneliness remains. Joni Mitchell's icily beautiful "Blue" gets a thaw and a late-night feel that are completely different but just as compelling. Not all of Jukebox's transformations are this successful: Marshall's penchant for turning formerly brash songs brooding (like The Covers Record's "Satisfaction") sounds too predictable on Frank Sinatra's "New York." And, while the choice to change James Brown's "I Lost Someone" from searing and pleading to languid was brave, the results fall flat. One of the most drastic remakes is Marshall's own Moon Pix track "Metal Heart," which adds more drama and dynamics to one of her prettiest melodies. While the way this version swings from aching verses to cathartic choruses works, the subtlety and simplicity of the original are missed. Indeed, many of Jukebox's best moments are the simplest. Marshall's reworking of the Highwaymen's 1990 hit "Silver Stallion" frees the song from its dated production, replacing it with acoustic guitar and pedal steel that impart a timeless, restless beauty. She pays Bob Dylan homage with a gritty, defiant, yet reverent take on "I Believe in You" from his 1978 Christian album Slow Train Coming and "Song to Bobby," Jukebox's lone new track, dedicated to and inspired by Dylan so thoroughly that she borrows his trademark cadences without sounding like an impersonation. Uneven as it may be, Jukebox is still a worthwhile portrait of Ch

The Doors Jukebox: The Songs That Inspired the Band

$17.4

The Doors Jukebox: The Songs That Inspired the Band

Popular Songs

$9.49

Popular Songs

In Popular Songs

$7.99

In Popular Songs

Country Fever Jukebox, Vol. 1

$10.52

This country-music release features renditions of a number of popular songs including "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down," "Mountain Music," "Whiskey River," "Behind Closed Doors," and "Wabash Cannonball. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

Songs That Make the Jukebox Play

$10.39

Tom Armstrong is part of the new school of old-school honky tonkers. Along with acts like Rex Hobart, the Derailers, and Mike Ireland, Armstrong takes listeners back to the days when giants such as Ray Price, Hank Williams, and Buck Owens ruled country music. A traditionalist in the best sense of the term, Armstrong has a purity of style that fits with this seemingly old-fashioned brand of honky tonk. He stocks his sophomore effort with a dozen originals that have all the grace and grit of the songs from country's golden era of the '50s and '60s. The dandy leadoff track, "Can't Stand to Think," would have been a fine follow-up to "Heartaches By the Number" for Price. The rousing Bakersfield-style "A Good Night Tonight" would fit nicely alongside a Wynn Stewart or Buck Owens number, while "Blues & Dues" could have shown up in a Hank Williams set. Standing out as Armstrong's most impressive originals, however, are the honky tonk waltz "Promises Promises" and the classic "tears in your beer" tune "I'll Match You." As with any good honky tonker, Armstrong's stock in trade are the tales of heartache, but he nicely varies the sound by slipping in more uptempo tunes like "You Used to Live It Up" alongside such sad songs of woe as "Brand New Memories" and "Give Up on Me." He also receives strong support from his backing band, the Jukebox Cowboys. In particular, fiddler Doug Adams and steel guitar man David Phillips team up to enliven several tracks, including the record's sole cover, Frank Miller Jr.'s mischievous "No Big Thing to Me." While Armstrong may not have the suave moves that brought Dwight Yoakam commercial success, he amply demonstrates his love and understanding of the old-school honky tonk sound and the talent to continue its traditions. ~ Michael Berick, Rovi Performers: Doug Adams - Fiddle; David Phillips - Guitar (Steel); Greg Reeves - Bass; Les James - Singer, Drums, Vocals; Mike Wolf - Guitar; Rob Douglas - Bass; Tom Armstrong - Singer, Vocals, Guitar