Post by cellarfullofnoise on May 27, 2005 9:19:44 GMT -5
BEST OF THE WEST?
Chris Riemenschneider, Minneapolis Star Tribune
May 27, 2005
Paul Westerberg just finished his 30 or so dates with His Only Friends, and his manager said he "has a tendency to climb under a rock for a while." Oh, really? But as it turns out, the singer already did plenty of talking about his new solo anthology, "Besterberg," in the liner notes of the CD, which is culled from his '90s albums to his recent work for Vagrant Records and includes five outtakes/rarities.
Writing about "Dyslexic Heart," which opens the 20-track collection, Westerberg says he thought it was "too cutesy for me." But when Cameron Crowe called, he added the na-na-na's and "lied and said I wrote it for 'Singles.' " The disc also includes his tracks from the "Friends" and "Melrose Place" soundtrack CDs, "Stain Yer Blood" and "A Star Is Bored." The latter tune, he said, is about the "transition between band and solo" and is "autobiographical to the point of cringing."
Maybe the best bit is on the collection's best non-LP track, "A Man Without Ties," about which he wrote: "Recorded on my own when I was living alone, literally while the frozen pizza was in the oven."
Of course, the best stuff on "Besterberg" (terrible name!) is the music that fans already know well, and there's plenty more that they'll bemoan for not being included. But Westerberg, who didn't choose the tracks, states that he thinks "Black Eyed Susan,"Good Day" and a few others should've made the cut. In the days of the iPod, it probably makes sense to make your own playlist rather than buy this thing.
The person that should really give a listen, though, is anyone who still naively thinks the guy hasn't done anything great since "Pleased to Meet Me."
www.startribune.com/stories/1371/5423094.html
www.startribune.com/stories/1371/5423094-2.html
Chris Riemenschneider, Minneapolis Star Tribune
May 27, 2005
Paul Westerberg just finished his 30 or so dates with His Only Friends, and his manager said he "has a tendency to climb under a rock for a while." Oh, really? But as it turns out, the singer already did plenty of talking about his new solo anthology, "Besterberg," in the liner notes of the CD, which is culled from his '90s albums to his recent work for Vagrant Records and includes five outtakes/rarities.
Writing about "Dyslexic Heart," which opens the 20-track collection, Westerberg says he thought it was "too cutesy for me." But when Cameron Crowe called, he added the na-na-na's and "lied and said I wrote it for 'Singles.' " The disc also includes his tracks from the "Friends" and "Melrose Place" soundtrack CDs, "Stain Yer Blood" and "A Star Is Bored." The latter tune, he said, is about the "transition between band and solo" and is "autobiographical to the point of cringing."
Maybe the best bit is on the collection's best non-LP track, "A Man Without Ties," about which he wrote: "Recorded on my own when I was living alone, literally while the frozen pizza was in the oven."
Of course, the best stuff on "Besterberg" (terrible name!) is the music that fans already know well, and there's plenty more that they'll bemoan for not being included. But Westerberg, who didn't choose the tracks, states that he thinks "Black Eyed Susan,"Good Day" and a few others should've made the cut. In the days of the iPod, it probably makes sense to make your own playlist rather than buy this thing.
The person that should really give a listen, though, is anyone who still naively thinks the guy hasn't done anything great since "Pleased to Meet Me."
www.startribune.com/stories/1371/5423094.html
www.startribune.com/stories/1371/5423094-2.html
