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LA RECENSIONE
Essere l'ultimo arrivato in un sito come DeBaser da la stessa sensazione di arrivare tardi ad una festa e rendersi conto che le donne più belle sono già state prese.
Che fare quindi, se tutti i dischi dei quali mi sarebbe piaciuto scrivere sono stati trattati abbondantemente? Nelle feste di cui sopra, ci si butta sulle seconde scelte.
Eccomi dunque con la mia birra in mano intento a fiutare l'eventuale preda. Ad un certo punto, dietro una finestra sgangherata, scorgo un ragazzo dallo sguardo malinconico che mi fissa. Si chiama Emitt Rhodes. Cosa si nasconde dietro quella finestra?
Nel 1970, un anno dopo lo scioglimento della sua Band per Teenagers, I Merry-Go-Round; Rhodes si chiude nel Garage dei suoi genitori con gli strumenti e un registratore a quattro tracce, per registrare il suo Debut Album tutto da solo. Nello stesso anno, In Scozia, il baronetto McCartney stava facendo la stessa cosa con il suo primo disco, cosa che ha dell'ironico ascoltando le due opere: sembrano farina dello stesso sacco.
Le riviste di settore incensarono il lavoro del Songwriter dell Illinois, soprannominandolo “The One Man Beatles”. Io lo chiamerei più correttamente “il sosia del sosia di McCartney”, perché dal primo all'ultimo secondo del disco, è chiaro sia nell'uso della strumentazione, che nelle prove vocali, l'influenza del bassista di Liverpool.
Si apre con una frizzante Pop Song pianistica, “With my Face on the Floor”, orecchiabile e allegra.
Si continua su questa falsariga fino a “Long Time to See” che con la sua malinconia e nei suoni addirittura precede le atmosfere che saranno del “Band on the Run” McCartneyano.
“Lullaby”, dolce e sussurrata, sfiora davvero il plagio nei confronti del suo modello; sfiderei chiunque a non scambiarlo per Paul.
Col singolo “Frash as a Daisy” si ritorna ad un clima più ritmato. Il disco scorre piacevolmente, con dei pezzi che risaltano sugli altri (Live Till you Die), fino alla canzone migliore del lotto: “Find Yourself Running”, dove finalmente sembra trasparire dopo tanti, anche se piacevoli esercizi di stile, L'anima dell'artista. Stranamente è l'unico pezzo che sembra influenzato leggermente da Lennon.
In conclusione, mi pare esagerato che qualcuno lo abbia definito uno dei migliori dischi degli anni 70, ma può piacere, e parecchio, a chi si trova a suo agio con quel tipo di Songwriting che non mira a rivoluzioni radicali, ma soltanto a solleticare il palato di chi ama una certa musica orecchiabile.
Nota a parte per il mastering: il continuo Bounce sulle tracce, rende difficoltoso l'ascolto ad orecchi abituati a lavori puliti. Ma questo è puro artigianato, fatto davvero in casa; la resa e a dir poco sporca, ed è un peccato, dato che il talento c'era.
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Riassunto del Bot
L'album di debutto di Emitt Rhodes, realizzato nel 1970 in pieno fai-da-te, ripropone un pop raffinato ma semplice, fortemente influenzato dallo stile di Paul McCartney. La produzione artigianale dona un suono sporco che rischia di penalizzare l'ascolto, ma il talento e le atmosfere malinconiche emergono chiaramente. Pur non essendo un capolavoro assoluto, il disco è ideale per chi ama un songwriting orecchiabile e genuino degli anni '70.Tracce testi video
01 With My Face on the Floor (03:09)
With My Face On The Floor
Well, I'm down with my face on the floor
Yes I got what I asked for and more
Well, the moment she stepped through that door
I was down with my face on the floor
Now I'm standing with back to the wall
Waiting, praying the ceiling don't fall
Well, I once thought that I knew it all
Now I'm standing with back to the wall
Well now she's gone away, just took time to say I'll drop you a line
Well now she's gone away, just took time to say I'll see you some time
Well, I'm down with my face on the floor
Yes I got what I asked for and more
Well, the moment she stepped through that door
I was down with my face on the floor
Well, the moment she stepped through that door
I was down with my face on the floor
03 She's Such a Beauty (02:24)
She's such a beauty so young and so lovely
And all her time is spent by her mother's side
Washing the dishes and ironing her dresses
And hanging them up in the sunshine to dry
My, my, my, my and then she hangs them in the sunshine to dry
Her mother's quite strict with her little lady
She doesn't let her go out and have fun
She stays at home and does the chores daily
It seems that her work is never quite done
My, my, my, my It seems that her work is never quite done
And if you see her tell her hello from someone who knows the family
And if she tells you she doesn't know who you're speaking of mention Stanley
She's such a beauty so young and so lovely
And all her time is spent by her mother's side
04 Long Time No See (03:19)
Long Time No See
It's been a long time, I remember you well
It's been a long time no see, where you been keeping yourself?
You've been staying all alone when you should be playing
Been feeling all alone when you should be praying
It's been a long time no see
It's been a rough road to ride, says the sun in the West
It's been hard but I get by with a moment to rest
Been thinking all the time that things will get better
And living all alone can't make me much sadder
It's been hard but I'll get by
It's been a long time, I remember you well
It's been a long time no see, where you been keeping yourself?
You've been staying all alone when you should be playing
Been feeling all alone when you should be praying
It's been a long time no see
05 Lullabye (01:08)
Tears that angels cry
And they darken all the sky
When the one you love says good-bye
Tears that angels cry
Sing a lullabye
Sing it soft and only sigh
When the one you love says goodbye
Sing a lullabye
When your love still is strong
When the one you love is gone
06 Fresh as a Daisy (02:51)
Fresh As A Daisy
Well if you come from Heaven
You know that that's okay
Just as long as you're here to help me
It doesn't matter how long you stay
Talking 'bout you baby,
Don't you know you're fresh as a daisy, as fresh as a daisy
Well tell me can you feel it?
I'm felling all right myself
I'm changing my old habits
And I've found a new bill of health
All because of you baby
Don't you know you're fresh as a daisy, as fresh as a daisy, as fresh as a daisy
You do the things you do very well
You make me feel the way I've never felt
You make me feel the way I've never felt
Don't know how I'll feel tomorrow
Tomorrow's another day
I like everything about you
What more is there to say
Talking 'bout you baby,
Don't you know you're fresh as a daisy, as fresh as a daisy
Talking 'bout you baby,
Don't you know you're fresh as a daisy, as fresh as a daisy
Hooray, the Lord is good to his children
Hooray, the Lord is good to his children
Hooray, the Lord is good to his children
Hooray, the Lord is good to his children
07 Live Till You Die (02:48)
Live Till You Die
I have to say the things I feel, oh
I have to feel the things I say
You must live till you die, you must fight to survive
You must live till you die, you must feel to be alive
You must live till you die
See the sun rising in the east, welcome warm days
Feel my heart flying every time we're alone babe
Everything around me has been changing so
I can't let go, oh no, no
You must live till you die, you must fight to survive
You must live till you die, you must feel to be alive
You must live till you die
Feel the earth trembling, have you heard distant thunder?
Everything's moving what's this feeling I'm under
Everything around me has been changing so
I can't let go, oh no, no
You must live till you die, you must fight to survive
You must live till you die, you must feel to be alive
You must live till you die, you must live till you die
I have to spin the spinning wheel, I have to kneel that way
I have to say the things I feel, I have to feel the things I say
You must live till you die, you must fight to survive
You must live till you die, you must feel to be alive
You must live till you die
08 Promises I've Made (03:24)
Promises I've Made
Ever since you have gone the days don't seem so bright
And I wish I could forget you but I can't
Ever since you have gone I haven't felt quite right
And I promised I forget all that you meant
But now that I'm alone I can't stop my self from thinking
I can't stop myself from breaking promises I've made to myself
Babe, you must believe
I have promised myself I wouldn't dream of you
But I find that awful hard sometimes to do
I have promised myself I wouldn't think of you
But I find that just as hard you know it's true
Because when I'm alone I can't stop my self from thinking
I can't stop myself from breaking promises I've made to myself
Babe, you must believe
I have promised myself I wouldn't think of you
But I find that awful hard sometimes to do
I have promised myself I wouldn't dream of you
But I find that just as hard you know it's true
Because when I'm alone I can't stop my self from thinking
I can't stop myself from breaking promises I've made to myself
Babe, you must believe
I need to see you in the morning, feel your arms around me at night
09 You Take the Dark Out of the Night (02:58)
You Take The Dark Out Of The Night
I can't quite say that I love the place I'm in
But it's better than it's been for a long time
A while ago I was feeling all alone
Now I'm feeling right at home here beside you
You take the dark out of the night and make it day
You take the clouds out of the sky when they turn gray
So love me right or don't love me now at all
If I stand I'm bound to fall right on my face
So love me right and don't let me down again
You are bound to lose a friend if you do babe
You take the dark out of the night and make it day
You take the clouds out of the sky when they turn gray
Well, you know what it's like to be standing all alone
To be shivering and cold, now I'm feeling nice and warm
I can't quite say that I love the place I'm in
But it's better than it's been for a long time
A while ago I was feeling all alone
Now I'm feeling right at home here beside you
You take the dark out of the night and make it day
You take the clouds out of the sky when they turn gray
10 You Should Be Ashamed (02:42)
You Should Be Ashamed
You've let me down too many times
Too many times to count you've let me down
You've made me sad too many ways
Too many days went bad, you've made me sad
You should be ashamed of yourself woman
You know you should, you ain't no good
You should be ashamed of yourself
You told me lies and I believed
You made a fool of me, you told me lies
I've tried so hard but I have failed
Can't find the words to tell the way I feel
You should be ashamed of yourself woman
You know you should, you ain't no good
You should be ashamed of yourself
Well, I'm so glad it's over now
I'm feeling bad but still somehow
I'm so glad it's over now
You should be ashamed of yourself woman
You know you should, you ain't no good
You should be ashamed of yourself
You've let me down too many times
Too many times to count you've let me down
You've made me sad too many ways
Too many days went bad, you've made me sad
You should be ashamed of yourself woman
You know you should, you ain't no good
You should be ashamed of yourself
You should be ashamed
11 Ever Find Yourself Running (02:38)
Ever Find Youself Running
Ever find yourself running, running, running away
Ever find yourself hiding from the things that you feel
Ever hear yourself crying, crying, crying to someone
Won't you look down from Heaven, won't you prove you are real?
Ever lose yourself searching, searching, searching in darkness
With your questions unanswered, never knowing the truth
Ever feel yourself dying, dying, dying a slow death
Heavy laden with burdens that are stealing your youth
Ever find yourself running, running, running away
Ever find yourself hiding from the things that you feel
Ever find yourself running?
Emitt Rhodes
Cantautore americano, membro dei The Merry-Go-Round negli anni '60; nel 1970 pubblicò il suo album solista omonimo, registrato in gran parte da solo su un registratore a quattro tracce nel garage dei genitori, e spesso paragonato per stile a Paul McCartney.01 Recensioni
