Mad Music – X-MAS EARLY

A slew of new music has entered my trachea lately, with mixed reviews once it hit my head. First of all the much-anticipated (by me, at least) soundtrack to “One Fast Move or I’m Gone- Kerouac’s Big Sur”, a collaboration between Jay Farrar, Ben Gibbard and Jack Kerouac. While Jay and Ben did not work directly with Jack (not without some serious smelling salts and a heater – name that movie), they did use his prose and poetry to fill in the lyrics with some great results. I applauded their use of his language and how it came together to create a song- I just wish the words had a better backdrop. The album soars on its opening track, “California Zephyr”, immediately conjuring up images of the lionized version of Jack: jovially making his way across the country he so closely inspected, observed and loved. Jack was the very essence of an American writer; mainly because he mythologized that idea himself in Post-War America. In many ways, through his idealization of small town people and the towns themselves (mainly the names) he has Americana written all over him. Pun intended.

However, most of this album uses that musical genre to bring his words to life, and musically speaking, it does quite the opposite of that. Jay Farrar’s steel guitar-infused Alt-Country can fit at certain points of the album, but the size and scope of its influence seems forced at times. At the outset of the cd itself, almost as a disclaimer, explains that Jack had an appreciation of folk music. Known as a jazz/bop fanatic, Jack’s image conveys a fast-paced, head-bobbing street walker with a great ear for music. However, Big Sur is the let down of that lifestyle, his breakdown from that fast pace that he simply could not keep up with. So yes, most of the album will (and does) convey a lamentful, nostalgic tone in general. Still, in my opinion, I would have loved to hear some horns or a little pace in the music here. All the songs seem to follow a familiar pattern, with some using steel guitar and some not. I will point out, in Kerouacian fashion, the album was recorded in 5 days with very little change to the original lay-downs. This, however, does not excuse the lack of preparation and insight into what the music should be beforehand. While Jack’s reputation is for spontaneity in his prose, he was meticulous in his approach, planning and spent countless hours writing and character sketching in his everyday life.

This album was put in the ultimate expectation section of my brain for some time, so it didn’t have a realistic shot at reaching it. My own insights and criticisms aside, it is a great album dedicated to a great writer. It’s somber nature reflects that of the desolate and gritty tone of the book itself, where Jack battles alcohol binges and hallucinations from the depths of his being. His spry nature does peek its head out occasionally throughout the course of the novel, and there is some of that in the album as well. Just because I am not an ambassador of twang does not mean this album did not accomplish what it set out to accomplish. It just leaves me clinging to certain songs more than others. Regardless, the prose and poetry of a great American writer was put to song, something that his fans will find is not only fitting, but overdue.