Warren Zevon is famous for black-hearted comedy tunes like "Werewolves of London" and "Excitable Boy," but his best work is a good bit deeper and more penetrating, and 2000's Life'll Kill Ya was an impressive return to form, a song cycle about aging and death that was played less for easy laughs than for the bitter humor derived from the knowledge that no one, the artist included, will get out of this world alive. Zevon's follow-up, 2002's My Ride's Here, for the most part recalls Zevon albums like Mr. Bad Example or Mutineer. My Ride's Here also finds Zevon collaborating with a number of writers from outside the world of music (not the first time he's done this; novelist Tom McGuane co-wrote "The Overdraft" on Envoy). Novelist Carl Hiaasen co-wrote "Basket Case," an ode to an insane girlfriend, while gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson collaborates on "You're a Whole Different Person When You're Scared." Sportswriter Mitch Albom, of all people, turns in the best collaboration on the album, "Hit Somebody! (The Hockey Song)." The sardonic "Genius" and "Sacrificial Lambs," and the title cut -- a meditation on mortality that would have fit in on Life'll Kill Ya -- are strong and remind listeners of just how talented Zevon still is. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
Mark Deming of Allmusic rated My Ride's Here two out of five stars. He stated that "the jokes tend to be a bit obvious", and that "the more introspective moments don't connect the way one might hope". However, he said that some of the tracks "are strong enough to remind listeners of just how talented Zevon still is". He concluded by saying that the album "is a misfire from an artist capable of much better work." Robert Christgau rated the album an A-, stating that Zevon was "at his best in the fictional-mythic mode that prevails". However, he said that he was "not above touring acoustic to shore up his collateral".
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