Dark Chords on a Big Guitar

Dark Chords on a Big Guitar

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Though she was earliest known as a folk traditionalist, Joan Baez has long been recognized for her good taste in contemporary songcraft. Four decades after introducing the young Bob Dylan to a wider listenership, she here finds kindred spirits in a range of artists from Greg Brown ("Sleeper," "Rexrith's Daughter") to Gillian Welch and David Rawlings ("Caleb Meyer," "Elvis Presley Blues") to Natalie Merchant (whose "Motherland" could have been written made to order for Baez) to young Josh Ritter ("Wings"). Her empathic version of the standout "In My Time of Need" by Ryan Adams shows that whatever she's lost in the upper register of her soprano, she's gained in the interpretive depth of her lower register. She also covers the comparatively quirky "Rosemary Moore" by Adams' former Whiskeytown bandmate, Caitlin Cary. Though the closing "Christmas in Washington" finds her pristine vocal smoothing the emotional rough edges from Steve Earle's original, most of the rest finds her not only selecting inspired material, but doing justice to it. --Don McLeese

Tracks:

Sleeper
In My Time of Need
Rosemary Moore
Caleb Meyer
Motherland
Wings
Rexroth's Daughter
Elvis Presley Blues
King's Highway
Christmas in Washington

Amazon.com

Though she was earliest known as a folk traditionalist, Joan Baez has long been recognized for her good taste in contemporary songcraft. Four decades after introducing the young Bob Dylan to a wider listenership, she here finds kindred spirits in a range of artists from Greg Brown ("Sleeper," "Rexrith's Daughter") to Gillian Welch and David Rawlings ("Caleb Meyer," "Elvis Presley Blues") to Natalie Merchant (whose "Motherland" could have been written made to order for Baez) to young Josh Ritter ("Wings"). Her empathic version of the standout "In My Time of Need" by Ryan Adams shows that whatever she's lost in the upper register of her soprano, she's gained in the interpretive depth of her lower register. She also covers the comparatively quirky "Rosemary Moore" by Adams' former Whiskeytown bandmate, Caitlin Cary. Though the closing "Christmas in Washington" finds her pristine vocal smoothing the emotional rough edges from Steve Earle's original, most of the rest finds her not only selecting inspired material, but doing justice to it. --Don McLeese

Customer Reviews:

Joan Baez Shines Brightly in "DARK CHORDS ON A BIG GUITAR".......2007-03-27

Joan Baez is many things to many people-a political activist, a pacifist, a writer, a musician. But, most of all, Joan Baez is a singer of rare and unequalled talent. While some of her offerings have only alluded to the mesmerizing depth of her powerful voice, she is in full force on her latest work "DARK CHORDS ON A BIG GUITAR". Gone is the lilting vibratto that jettisoned her to fame in the 1960's, but do not lament the loss, for it has been replaced with a richer, more mature tone that wraps itself around the music and adds new dimensions to some familiar songs. The album opens with Greg Brown's "Sleeper", an insistant and understated work that gets under your skin and requires a second and third listen. Ms. Baez, the consummate artist, has once again surrounded herself with excellent writers and wonderful songs, such as Ryan Adams' "In My Time Of Need", Greg Brown's "Rexroth's Daughter" and the quirky but winning "Rosemary Moore" by Caitlin Cary. Stand outs on this brilliant CD are numerous, and include the amazing "Motherland", written by Natalie Merchant but utterly transformed into an ethereal work of art by the perfect phrasing and tone that Ms. Baez imparts to it. Another favorite is one that I've never cared for in the past. I've always considered Steve Earle's "Christmas in Washington" to be a rough-edged, uneasy work, yet in the hands of the master, it is transformed into quietly sad and biting satire. Brilliant is the word that comes to mind when hearing the cut "Wings", written by Josh Ritter. This hypnotic work is one of the finest Baez recordings in the past decade and will undoubtedly become a concert classic. In "Wings", Joan Baez sings "I said inside this gilded cage, a songbird always looks so plain, well it's my home, last night I dreamed I grew wings...". There is nothing "plain" about this work. In fact, on DARK CHORDS ON A BIG GUITAR" Joan Baez soars on wings of gold.

Big sounds from a favorite voice.......2007-01-08

Far from settling into the oldies circuit and rehashing the same work over and over, Joan Baez moves into a new century on the strength of "Dark Chords On A Big Guitar." As she has throughout her long career, she cherry-picks great material from kindred spirits (Steve Earle, Natalie Merchant and Ryan Adams) and makes them her own. In the case of Earle's "Christmas in Washington," she even outdoes the original. For someone who has been making records for over 40 years, still sounding relevant is no mean feat.

ALSO: Ignore the reviews that gripe about the sound quality of "Dark Chords on a Big Guitar." I bought mine last summer at a performance by Joan and her band, and it sounds absolutely fine.

This Sleeper Is A Keeper!.......2005-09-03

Some of you old folkies out there need to get over the past and join the present. Those who complained about the heavy instrumentation and distortion on this recording must still be pining for the "good old days" of "Kumbaya" and "Blowin' In The Wind!" News flash: the moments of distortion were intentional, and Ms. Baez has joined the 21st century! I don't mean to knock the ancient stuff; I revisit the old favorites fairly frequently, but a vital, engaged artist continues to evolve, and Joan has been doing this throughout her career. A concert I attended in Poughkeepsie in the fall of 2004 (my fifth time, since 1982, to see her live), found Joan still very much in command of her artistic powers, and she performed some of the tracks from "Dark Chords On A Big Guitar" with the finest, rockin'est band she has ever worked with. This was part of a tour from which an upcoming live album ("Bowery Songs") was recorded, and I can't wait to hear it, since it will include Joan's rendition of Dylan's "Seven Curses," one of the highlights of the performance I saw. But back to "Dark Chords...," and to echo what another reviewer noted: what Joan's voice has lost in range and purity has been more than made up for with an expanded palette of colors and a deepening expressiveness, and it perfectly suits the modern sounds she is now experimenting with. Although I do miss Joan's own writing (which, I think, she under-values), I'm impressed with her choice of material here. Greg Brown's lovely "Sleeper" grabbed my attention immediately, and the album just gets better and better from there on. To hear Joan performing great songs by the likes of Ryan Adams, Natalie Merchant and Steve Earle is no revelation to those of us who have long admired Joan's ability to adapt to the times, but beyond that, she is better than ever at giving the work of others added dimension, stamping all of these songs with her own, unique mark (while, I should add, preserving the qualities that make the original creations so wonderful -- no excessive styling or annoying departures from the melody, like so many of today's female singers tend to do). My personal favorite is Josh Ritter's "Wings," as gorgeous and haunting as anything Baez has ever recorded. There are some big surprises here, too, with Joan getting down and dirty on "Elvis Presley Blues," and kicking up some dust on "Caleb Meyer," both of which were written by Gillian Welch and Henry Rawlings. No serious contemporary folk, roots music, or alt. country fan should be without "Dark Chords On A Big Guitar." Right on, Joan!!!

Probably my favorite Baez.......2005-01-20

My only complaint is recording quality. The selection of music and Baez's voice and arrangements is wonderful. This is a more rocked-out version of Baez than we are used to.

Among my favorites are "Sleeper" the opening song, a sensuous tale of lovers, "Caleb Meyer" a tale of a feisty woman fighting off a would-be rapist:

Caleb Meyer your ghost is goin
To wear those rattlin chains
WHen I go to sleep at night
Don't you call my name

I've been a fan of Baez for years and this is something of a departure from what you'll normally hear, but I think an enjoyable listen. Her voice and choice of music is always worthwhile.

Jaon Baez, still angelic, but not as creative.......2004-11-21

I was THRILLED to run out and buy the newset musical collection from one of my all time favorite folk artist, Joan Baez. Her singing and angelic voice still echos in your mind and brings you out into her world, but I was a little dissapointed to see that all the songs on her album we re-do's of other artists music. Seems to be a big thing in folk music these days, lots of re-do's, it was a tragic dissapointment. I expected more from the woman who WROTE the soundtrack for the movement in the 60's. But, it was still a well put together cd, I liked each and every song on it. Very upbeat and heavy, something fresh and funky. Loved it.

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