{"id":39783,"date":"2006-06-02T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2006-06-02T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/reviews\/black-coffee\/"},"modified":"2006-06-02T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2006-06-02T00:00:00","slug":"black-coffee","status":"publish","type":"review","link":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/reviews\/black-coffee\/","title":{"rendered":"Black Coffee"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

Al Kooper is one of those musicians everybody doesn’t
\nknow they know.<\/p>\n

He played on Dylan’s “Like a Rolling Stone” and wrote
\nthe oldie classic “This Diamond Ring.” He was a founding member of
\nBlood, Sweat & Tears and discovered\/produced Lynyrd Skynyrd and
\nhas played alongside Hendrix, The Who and the Rolling Stones. Yet,
\nhe’s never received a lot of public acclaim.<\/p>\n

Black Coffee<\/i> is Kooper’s first solo disc in 30
\nyears, and the music here is firmly rooted in the past. Kooper (who
\nplays keyboards and guitar, mostly) and the Funky Faculty play
\nolder blues, front-porch folk, 80s rock and even some soul, but
\neverything is inspired and loose; never has anyone sounded so happy
\nbeing so far out of touch with current music. Given Al’s track
\nrecord, and his stellar abilities as a producer and musician, this
\nis not a bad thing.<\/p>\n

Really, the only problem here is Al’s voice, which
\nsounds like Leon Russell mixed with Randy Newman. The opener “My
\nHands Are Tied” is a dead ringer for a Newman tune, actually, while
\n“Am I Wrong” has a rustic country charm — if you listen close, you
\ncan almost hear the rocking chair squeak. “How My Ever Gonna Get
\nOver You” is a long ballad, but Kooper’s smoky vocals sound more
\nnatural here, his ragged voice lending credibility where a smoother
\nsinger (say, Michael Buble) might have stripped the song of its
\nmeaning.<\/p>\n

By far the best track is the cover of “Get Ready,”
\nwhich blows the originals out of the water. A stomping two-step
\nbeat (courtesy of Anton Fig) brings out the bluesy feel but adds a
\nrock element; both were missing in the Rare Earth version, which
\nsounds positively anemic next to this version.<\/p>\n

“Keep It To Yourself” uses female backup vocals and
\nspare keyboard to create a sound almost like The Cure, a slow
\nburner with heart and a soulful guitar solo. The band turns in a
\nsmoking live cover of the Booker T instrumental “Green Onions,”
\nfeaturing several keyboard and guitar solos squished into a very
\nfast six minutes. “Childish Love” is another highlight, featuring a
\nRobert Fripp-esque riff against a Zeppelin-meets-Police rhythm
\nsection, if you can imagine.<\/p>\n

The disc only falters in a few places, most notably
\n“Imaginary Lover,” where Kooper plays a Steely Dan song but sings
\nit like Michael McDonald. “Another Man’s Prize” sounds like an old
\ncountry or Dylan piece but Kooper sets it to 80s music, thereby
\nstripping it of its meaning. “Just For A Thrill” tries to recapture
\nthe mood of “How My…” but is just a rehash, and not a good one at
\nthat.<\/p>\n

Finally, the cover of Hal Linden’s “Got My Ion Hue”
\ntries to be both reggae and rock and nearly pulls both off, while
\nthe live “Comin’ Back In A Cadillac” begins as a journeyman rock
\ntune (“I don’t have a dime \/ Most people say the way I live is a
\ncrime”) before descending into several horn and guitar jams,
\nbecoming an audience participation tune at the end. It would have
\nbeen the perfect way to end the disc, but Kooper throws on “(I Want
\nTo) Tell You The Truth,” which is just average.<\/p>\n

Black Coffee<\/i> is one of those discs that will
\nautomatically appeal to other musicians because of Kooper’s
\noutsider status and virtuosity on nearly every instrument. But
\nevery song here is a different style and the whole thing sounds
\nfresh, original and loose, something missing from most music these
\ndays. It’s well worth the time to check it out — and that cover of
\n“Get Ready” is the perfect place to start.<\/p>\n

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