Prior
to 2003 it was absolutely inconceivable that the Dixie
Chicks, the biggest-selling
female group of all time, could become embroiled in the red state-blue
state culture war to the point that their songs would be pulled from
some radio stations, sales boycotts would be organized and even death
threats would be made. But that’s exactly what happened after the
Texas trio told a London audience they were embarrassed that Dubya was
also a product of the Lone Star state.
To be precise, it was actually vocalist Natalie Maines who made the off-the-cuff
comment, but multi-instrumentalist sisters Martie Maguire and Emily Robison
backed Maines through the entire debacle.
“I learned I was ready to put my career on the line for something
I believed in,” says Maguire. “Emily and I could have pressured
Natalie to apologize, and I was so proud that I had that inner strength — that
nothing is as important as standing up for what you believe in.”
The group needn’t have worried — there were millions of Americans
who shared their dim view of the president and still loved their music.
In the wake of the controversy they embarked on their “Top of the
World” tour, which yielded the largest one-year take ever for a country
music act, $62 million.
In 2004 the Chicks joined the historic “Vote for Change” tour,
performing in swing states around the country in support of Democratic
presidential hopeful Sen. John Kerry.
Two years later, we know how it’s all turned out politically: Bush
is still in office, Americans are still dying in Iraq, and the Right is
still trying to paint conscientious dissent as traitorous. But what of
the Dixie Chicks?
On their rousing new album “Taking the Long Way” (Columbia),
they’re more outspoken and ambitious than ever. Defiant first single “Not
Ready to Make Nice” is a giant F-U to all those who tried to bring
the band down. On the chorus Maines declares, “I’m not ready
to make nice/I’m not ready to back down/I’m still mad as hell
and/I don’t have time to go round and round and round.” You
go, girls!
For the first time the Chicks co-wrote every song on their album, their
personal lyrics tackling themes from provincial intolerance (“Lubbock
or Leave It”) to their own celebrity (“Everybody Knows”).
Production duties were handled by super-producer Rick Rubin (Johnny Cash,
Red Hot Chili Peppers, Run DMC). Several of the album’s 14 tracks
have a perceptible Southern California rock influence.
Like it’s 10 million-selling predecessors, “Wide Open Spaces” and “Fly,” “Taking
the Long Way” is guaranteed to be a sales blockbuster. More importantly,
it’s an artistic and emotional step forward for the band. “This
album was total therapy,” says Maines. “I’m more at peace
now. Writing these songs and saying everything we had to say makes it possible
to move on.”
I love this Fabric
If the secret to hosting a great cocktail party is having great music to
play, there are
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going to be lots of fabulous shindigs in the wake of this
review of “Jukebox,” an ice cube cool collection from Denmark.
After taking Europe and Japan by storm almost two years ago, the album
has been released in the U.S. by Hidden Beach International.
“Jukebox” is the result of collaborations between 81-year-old
Danish pop-jazz pianist Bent Fabricius-Bjerre, better known as Bent
Fabric,
and a handful of young Danish producers. Unlike the usual compilations
of older artists’ remixed classics, this is an honest-to-goodness
studio album.
With the exception of “Alley Cat,” Fabric’s number one
pop instrumental from 1962, presented here in it’s original form,
the album features all new piano compositions from Fabric melded to hook-filled
lounge and electro soundscapes. Original lyrics, performed in English,
are added to all but two of the cuts.
If tracks from “Jukebox” sound familiar on their very first
play — it’s because several of the songs have already been
licensed for use in movies (“Fun With Dick and Jane,” “The
Stepford Wives”), TV shows (“Las Vegas,” “Kitchen
Confidential”) and promotional campaigns (Cingular Wireless phones
and The WB network).
Key tracks on the album include the big beat title cut, Bossa Nova “Haven’t
You Noticed,” featuring a delicious vocal by Liv Lykke, peppy “Shake,” and
the ultra-sunny “Everytime.”
Sound bites: Out musical and life partners Jason and deMarco will release “Till
the End of Time” (Centaur), a 12-track collection that “takes
the listener on a journey through the depths and plateaus of relationships,” on
June 27. “Our new music is romantic rock pop with big vocals and
lots of harmonies,” says deMarco. First single “Trying to Get
to You” has been remixed by Tracy Young (Madonna) and L.E.X. (Ricky
Martin, Barbra Streisand)…Fifteen years after the release of his
breakthrough single “Supermodel (You Better Work),” RuPaul
returns June 13 with “RuPaul. Reworked (RuCo.),” a pulsating
set of 15 remixes. According to the diva, “This is a booty-shaking,
adrenaline inducing, supersonic master blaster from beginning to end! I
can’t wait to hear it in the disco.”
info: audiophile@q-notes.com
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