Vraith, I thought the same about "You and Your Blues," but I think now that's because there are such better songs on the album that distracted me from it. Now that I've played it to death, I've gone back to some of the less flashy songs, and they're growing on me. I love part where Dave sings, "...woman, you suffer from a color ... I suffer 'cause of you ... now everybody's suffering." Dave is really struggling to sing at the limit of his vocal range here, and pulls it off. But the lyrics are pretty cool, too. It's not a blues song, but an anti-blues. He's telling her to stop being such a depressed, whiny *&%$ and stop bringing everyone down. Nothing profound, but a neat twist on the blues tropes (crossroads, dust my broom, etc.)
I totally agree on the bass effects. I have no idea why most bassists don't utilize a fuller palette of sound.
Vraith wrote:I liked MA's playing generally...but this sounds to me not only beyond anything he did play, but likely beyond anything he could ever have played.
Like I said, Wolf has a few tricks that MA never used. Sometimes he matches Eddie note-for-note, so well that I wonder if it was Eddie on bass (he did this on the VH III album, played some of MA's parts, but I doubt he'd do that to his own son). Eddie used to say that he liked the fact that MA wasn't a flashy bassist, always filling the spots in the song where Eddie would like to noodle. This never made much sense to me, because music is about everyone filling space together, and there is infinite room for talented musicians to play "in between" each other, even if they're doing it at the same time. I always had the sense that Eddie was covering for Mike, making excuses. But maybe it was about ego, too, and that explains why he pushed Mike way down in the mix. And now, maybe Eddie doesn't have as much to prove, and has an easier time keeping his ego in check when it comes to letting his own flesh-and-blood shine. But I have a feeling that you're right: Wolf is better. This means more, however, than technical skill. This also means that he has a better sense of what notes would benefit the song. He plays things that never would have occurred to Mike. Damn, those VH genes have got some talent!
Cail wrote:
There's nothing really memorable at first listen, but the musicianship is top-notch.
I thought so at first, too. That's why I said there weren't any hits. But after a few more spins, I find myself crawling with VH earworms.
I, too, wonder if they can pull it off live, but mostly because of Dave. I have no doubt the other three could do this in their sleep. There really aren't many layered guitar overdubs. Even when it sounds like there are, it's really Wolf with a guitar effect on the bass, or Eddie playing a stereo guitar that sends the signal of some strings to the left channel and some strings to the right.