Jacket Full of Danger

• Artist: Adam Green
• Rating:
• Release Date: April 24, 2006
• Type: Contains explicit content, Enhanced CD-ROM
• Genre: Rock

Review

In his later years, legendary lyricist Sammy Cahn took to the stage to perform myriad of his songs solo, interspersing them with a running commentary that kept audiences enthralled, all captured for posterity on his An Evening with Sammy Cahn album. Adam Green's Jacket Full of Danger album casts a similar spell, even without a spoken commentary. The singer/songwriter may indeed be a Cahn for a new age; he has similar gifts for lyrical construction and turns of phrase.

However, Green also graduated with honors from the story-telling school of songwriting, listing Hank Williams, Roy Orbison, and Chet Baker as inspirations. You can hear traces of them all in his vocal delivery, with a touch of Elvis Presley to boot. Musically, however, Green's far more eclectic than that roster implies, and his range of influences is quite extraordinary. The melody from Lou Reed's "Street Life" pumps through "Nat King Cole," a Chuck Berry riff barrels through "Hollywood Bowl," the drone of the Velvet Underground's "Venus in Furs" fires up "C-Birds," the Gershwins infuse "Drugs," while Motown soars with "Vultures." And it's Motown-styled orchestral strings that sweep through much of the set, to turn many of the song's arrangements inside out. In contrast, the lyrics reflect Green's jaded, cynical world view, along with a sometimes tart take on women, and a mouth that at one point is so foul it would make Lenny Bruce (or Ol' Dirty Bastard for that matter) blush. In any event, the songs instantly get under your skin, both musically and lyrically, and all told, Jacket is an exceedingly clever set, but one that doesn't call attention to just how smart it is. Definitely not your typical singer/songwriter, Adam Green is so much more than that, and this album has a classic, timeless feel to it, brilliantly drawing from divergent musical traditions (much like the Gershwins in that respect), twisting from them an unique but incredibly familiar sound. Green's past albums have all been enjoyable affairs. This one, however, is a masterpiece. ~ Jo-Ann Greene, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track Title	Composers	Performers	Time
Pay the Toll (Lyrics)	Adam Green	Adam Green	(2:16)
Hollywood Bowl (Lyrics)	Adam Green	Adam Green	(1:33)
Vultures (Lyrics)	Adam Green	Adam Green	(2:01)
Novotel (Lyrics)	Adam Green	Adam Green	(1:39)
Party Line (Lyrics)	Adam Green	Adam Green	(2:18)
Hey Dude (Lyrics)	Adam Green	Adam Green	(1:39)
Nat King Cole (Lyrics)	Adam Green	Adam Green	(2:33)
C-Birds	Adam Green	Adam Green	(2:05)
Animal Dreams (Lyrics)	Adam Green	Adam Green	(1:49)
Cast a Shadow		Adam Green	(1:57)
Drugs (Lyrics)	Adam Green	Adam Green	(2:04)
Jolly Good (Lyrics)	Adam Green	Adam Green	(2:02)
Watching Old Movies (Lyrics)	Adam Green	Adam Green	(2:01)
White Women	Adam Green	Adam Green	(3:01)
Hairy Women (Lyrics)	Adam Green	Adam Green	(4:05)

Credits

Dan Myers (Engineer), Nathan Brown (Group Member), Nathan Brown (Wurlitzer), Emily Lazar (Mastering), Chris Isom (Guitar), Jeff Teader (Layout Design), Antoine Silverman (Violin), Dan Myers (Mixing), Jane Scarpantoni (String Arrangements), Parker Kindred (Group Member), Lorenza Ponce (Violin), Nathan Brown (Piano), Parker Kindred (Drums), David Gold (Viola), Galen Pehrson (Artwork), Joan Wasser (Violin), Steven Mertens (Bass), Steven Mertens (Group Member), Jane Scarpantoni (Cello), Chris Isom (Group Member), Galen Pehrson (Cover Art)

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)