So the weekend ends this way, with another grill out and a little sunshine. Much better than the weekend before, eh?
Just a short bit tonight, as I'm shot after another busy weekend. Looking back I don't seem to have many restful, rejuvenating weekends, just the kind that are filled with tasks and obligations. At least this time I got to see some friends and get a little sun, which is about all a man can ask for these days.
I've written before about my love of Colin Hay's solo efforts. While his album 'Going Somewhere' is a great piece of work, start to finish, he does have other songs that are equally worthy. But while I love some of the songs on his collection Man @ Work, it seems to be an uneven affair with a range in quality.
A collection of disparate tracks, the 2003 release is less an album than a collection of work. Tracks vary from original compositions to re-recordings of his Men At Work hits to acoustic rearrangements of his hits. There's a little bit of everything here, but not all of it is of the highest caliber. Don't get me wrong - I still very much enjoy the album, it's just that as a whole, its a bit more uneven than Going Somewhere. Clear standout tracks from this collection include more of Hays' sublime acoustic work, his playing soft and dynamic with his distinctive vocal stylings. One of my favorite tracks of the 80s, 'Down Under', sounds excellent as a stripped down number. The song takes on a whole new feel as a result, becoming more contemplative and almost mournful, somehow. 'Who Can It Be Now?', another big hit by Men At Work, gains that same level of introspection and curiously subdued nature from a paring of the elements. The central hook sounds just as great on an acoustic as it did on a sax in the original. The version of the wonderful 'Waiting for My Real Life to Begin' is the same here as it is on Going Somewhere - still great and heartbreaking, just the same version.
The best track, though, has to be the acoustic rendition of the Men At Work song 'Overkill'. What was once an up-tempo number becomes a beautiful, haunting number about second guessing and obsessive recollection. It's an amazing song and Hays' voice sounds superb when he sings it. The song is simply a great bit of writing that sounds fantastic in his hands.
There are still a handful of tracks unaccounted for in this post, which I won't examine in depth. It's not that I don't like them, they're fine as they are, but they're just not for me. There's something about probably half the songs on this album that just don't work for me, but I think that's me and not Hay's production. Maybe other people, his fanatics, really love them. I just know there are some clear, strong tracks in comparison. Regardless, if you want some of the better tracks you can cherry-pick them on iTunes or another service. They're really solid. Just not the entire album. Still, Hay is a great performer with a distinct, appealing sound that shouldn't be missed.
Just a short bit tonight, as I'm shot after another busy weekend. Looking back I don't seem to have many restful, rejuvenating weekends, just the kind that are filled with tasks and obligations. At least this time I got to see some friends and get a little sun, which is about all a man can ask for these days.
I've written before about my love of Colin Hay's solo efforts. While his album 'Going Somewhere' is a great piece of work, start to finish, he does have other songs that are equally worthy. But while I love some of the songs on his collection Man @ Work, it seems to be an uneven affair with a range in quality.
There are still a handful of tracks unaccounted for in this post, which I won't examine in depth. It's not that I don't like them, they're fine as they are, but they're just not for me. There's something about probably half the songs on this album that just don't work for me, but I think that's me and not Hay's production. Maybe other people, his fanatics, really love them. I just know there are some clear, strong tracks in comparison. Regardless, if you want some of the better tracks you can cherry-pick them on iTunes or another service. They're really solid. Just not the entire album. Still, Hay is a great performer with a distinct, appealing sound that shouldn't be missed.
