Songstress
Marianne Faithfull last collaborated with producer
Hal Willner on her iconic Strange Weather album in 1987. Though
Faithfull has continued to record sporadically -- and has written and published her memoirs -- it's odd to think that she hasn't worked with
Willner again until now, because then as now, the match feels effortless and natural. Like Strange Weather,
Easy Come Easy Go is a covers collection, featuring
Faithfull in different musical settings and interpreting the songs of everyone from
Merle Haggard to
Smokey Robinson to
Duke Ellington to
Randy Newman to
the Decemberists to
Morrissey with a killer guest list including
Antony Hegarty,
Rufus Wainwright,
Teddy Thompson,
Kate & Anna McGarrigle,
Jarvis Cocker,
Jenni Muldaur,
Sean Lennon,
Warren Ellis,
Nick Cave, and
Keith Richards. The core band on this set includes old friends like
Marc Ribot and
Greg Cohen as well as drummer
Jim White,
Rob Burger,
Doug Weiselman,
Steve Weisberg,
Barry Reynolds,
Steven Bernstein,
Marty Ehrlich, and
Lenny Pickett. The sense of stylistic sprawl on these 12 songs is incredible. The album opener, a cover of
Dolly Parton's "Down from Dover," features the full band and guests numbering 18 strong!
Faithfull's trademark deep-throated, whiskey-and-cigarettes-ravaged voice is in better shape than it's been in a decade at least. It's full and expressive, and she brings up a depth of passion for this sad tale that almost soars. The band, arranged by
Weisberg, plays with beautiful space and elegant harmonics with nice work by
Ribot and
Burger.
Cave sings backing vocals on
the Decemberists' "The Crane Wife 3," its lithe rock arrangement shaded by a beautiful British folk-style melody and gorgeous bass work by
Cohen, celeste by
Burger, and a three-piece string section. While
Wainwright's signature backing vocals grace a jazzy arrangement of
Espers' "Children of Stone," and the chart is eight minutes of pure, nocturnal lounge lizard eros, it does go on a bit too long, emptying it somewhat of its power.
Ellington's "Solitude" works far better, as
Faithfull's command of sparse phrases drives the tune, expressing more in the spaces between words than the words themselves -- or even her voice. Other highlights include an excellent version of
Judee Sill's "The Phoenix," and a deeply emotive, almost startling cover of
Morrissey's "Dear God Please Help Me. There is a fantastic--if surreal--faux-soul reading of
Robinson's "Ooh Baby Baby," as a duet with
AntonyThe disc closes with
Richards adding both his guitar (to those of
Ribot and
Reynolds) and his raggedy croak of a vocal to
Faithfull's on
Haggard's "Sing Me Back Home." It's sad and slow, but feels more contrived than honestly emotional. While this is a long journey with a couple of missteps Ms. Faithfull shows up in excellent form throughout this offering. If you are patient, there is more than enough here to hold your attention and take you on journeys through love, lust, tragedy, and longing and bring you home again.(The British version of this CD, contains an extra CD with six extra tracks--the Morrissey and Judee SIll covers on this version came from the British one--and a bonus DVD with a documentary about the making of the album.) ~ Thom Jurek