Label: Pete Records
Release Date: November 2003
Website: www.robertdeeble.com
Robert Deeble
- Thirteen Stories
Matthew Ralph
Robert likes to joke around that he comes out with albums as often as
the Olympics, but given the output of the left coast singer/songwriter
in the past decade the World Cup might be a more accurate comparison.
The Olympics come and go and memory of the names and medals fade until
the next time around, where the World Cup is on soccer fans' minds
until the event is staged once again. Ask a Brit about the
England/Brazil match in the last cup and he'll talk as if it happened
yesterday.
A lot has happened in the four years since Deeble's last record ‹ heck,
Ryan Adams has put out something like a dozen albums since then ‹ but
the unheralded release of Thirteen Stories late last year makes the
too few fans of this songwriting genius forget how long a wait it has
been. When Deeble is playing, memory quickly fades as his soothing
voice takes over and delivers stories of life and death and everything
in between.
"The Secret Life of Emily Dickinson" is an instant classic, one that
demands repeated listens. Not to mention a look over the lyric sheet
just for good measure to make sure you are singing the right words in
time. The mere mention of the poet, who captured beauty so elegantly in
her poems, adds another enticing element to the song. Reaching into
literary tradition for inspiration in his storytelling is certainly a
theme throughout, from the Salinger-esque title to the album's 12th
and final song "A Russian Murder Ballad," with its obvious nod to
Dostoevsky and the Brothers Karamazov.
In addition to borrowing from the classics, Deeble looks to modern day
events for inspiration, using the rocket ship calculation mishap at
NASA to revisit the character of Joe. From the tree climber on his
first record, Joe has grown up to work in the space program, but
through a calculation error costs the government millions.
Always the witty singer, who we remember once imagined Damien Jurado on
the cover of a romance novel, Deeble tries to comfort his shamed
character and asks, "What's a million trillion dollars for?" We then
get a history lesson of the space program, a reminder that seems all
the more relevant with our current president looking to Mars (I'm sure
Robert has his own opinions about that). Unlike John Mellencamp
updating us on Jack and Diane, this song stands alone as a brilliant folk
number definitive of all that is great about one of the most underrated
songwriters around. His David Bowie reference at the end ‹ "this is
ground control to major Tom" ‹ follows his elegant rendition of the
Velvet Underground tune "I'll Be Your Mirror."
Formatted like a book with prose on the back of the jacket that
incorporates all of the album's song titles in a narrative, this album
represents a sort of research project for Deeble. He's reached back in
time, referencing his favorite literature, music and historical
moments, even made a nod to his own songwriting past to catalogue a
refreshing collection of stories and songs. In the end, he leaves the
listener to make up their own mind about the 13th song, giving plenty
of inspiration for just that.
posted 02.11.03
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Matt Ralph has bags full of bad CD's. Add to his collection at matt@tangzine.com
2002-2004 White Elephant
Productions