Rating:
Genre:
Country
Release Date: 07/07/2009
Run Time: 34:56
Jim Lauderdale's
Planet of Love is one of the most auspicious debuts a
singer/songwriter could release. While
Lauderdale had been on the scene for quite a while hanging on the West Coast -- where his actual first album was recorded by
Columbia and never released -- he spent most of his time (and still does) writing songs for other acts.
Planet of Love is one of the first records of the new
country. It has modern
adult contemporary sensibilities built into its production by the once and future husbands of
Rosanne Cash,
Rodney Crowell, and
John Leventhal, solid
country singing from
Lauderdale -- who was raised in North Carolina -- and
country songs that are so mercurial they seem to defy the genre. In many ways,
Planet of Love is the '90s version (post-cocaine) of
outlaw country. It may not fit any one place stylistically, but
Crowell and
Leventhal had long been pushing at
country radio's boundaries, and
Planet of Love is truly the first
Americana and
adult alternative record to land.
Reprise had no idea how to market it, and though it sold acceptably and was reviewed very favorably, it was a blip on the screen. That doesn't mean it's not a classic.
Lauderdale's songwriting, especially when paired with
Leventhal, is flawless: there's enough
rock, enough
country, enough striking
pop hooks, and killer bridges to make any music fan swoon. (It also doesn't hurt that
Lauderdale is an amazing vocalist who has sung with the cream of
country's crop.) The hard rural edge in
Lauderdale's voice is inescapable, but it was in
Elvis' too. The ten songs here are interchangeable in terms of excellence but the slick,
rockabilly-tinged
"Heaven's Flame," and
"Maybe" with its
Traveling Wilburys' shuffle, are mind blowers to open a record with. Likewise, the honky tonkin'
"I Wasn't Fooling Around" has all the marks of being inspired by
Faron Young, though it's thoroughly postmodern; but in
Lauderdale's voice it could be sung by either
George Jones or
Bono! The track
"Bless Her Heart" proves that he can sing a
ballad as well. This is heartbreaking without sentimentality. The emotion in it is one of honesty, confessional shame and spine-breaking regret. (The chorus of backing vocalists that includes
Shawn Colvin is also noteworthy.)
Emmylou Harris made her first, though certainly not last appearance on a
Lauderdale record doing a stunning (what else?) harmony vocal on
"The King Of Broken Hearts," echoing both
Merle Haggard and
Gram Parsons. The last two cuts are the bluesy rocker
"What You Don't Know" with a
Howlin' Wolf moan at the end of each line in the refrain, and
the Everly Brothers-inspired
"My Last Request," with a chilling harmony vocal by
Crowell. If any record from the 1990s deserves to be reissued, it's this one. It's a masterpiece top to bottom and broke open the floodgates for the
Americana format in that decade, while kicking off an eclectic but consistently interesting recording career.
~Thom Jurek, All Music Guide
;)
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