REVIEW: Graham Parker, The Mona Lisa's Sister (Buddha)
- Bill Holmes
The amount of Graham Parker releases over the past three years has been absolutely staggering, especially when you consider that just about all of them anthologize older material. Buddha Records (yes, the spelling is different than it used to be) has nabbed one of Parker's pivotal records from the mid-80s and offers the listener an exciting remastered version complete with original artwork, new liner notes and a bonus track ("Ordinary Girl"). I say exciting because as anyone knows, most "remastered" releases differ little from their original counterparts unless the prior version sounds like it was recorded underwater. The sound quality on the original was very good, but here it's stunning. The bass line on "Under The Mask Of Happiness" is so pronounced it's as if you are playing along with the record. The acoustic guitars ring, drums snap, and Parker's vocals are bright and full.
After some early success with pub rock r&b and the unfortunate albatross of being lumped together with Elvis Costello and Joe Jackson as "angry young men" from the UK, Parker hit his commercial zenith with Squeezing Out Sparks and the smash hit "Local Girls". Afterwards, though, US fame waned, despite the occasional radio play ("Wake Up Next To You") and even a duet with the then red-hot Boss. Fans remained loyal, however, and without his backing band to fill out the sound, Parker became a much better guitar player and emotive vocalist. Sister features nods to his new directions with reggae ("The Girl Isn't Ready"), Americana folk ("Blue Highways") and even inspired covers ("Cupid", a song he currently performs acapella, thanks to the day his accompanist left a recent songwriters tour). "Get Started (Start A Fire)", a fine acoustic driven pop song, even had some moderate radio success. From this release on, Parker seemed to reinvent himself as a musician as forceful alone with a guitar as he was with his stellar backing band from the salad days.
Graham Parker may not be an angry young man anymore, but his acerbic wit is as sharp as ever. This advance did not contain his newly penned liner notes, but if they are anything like his frequent diatribes on his web site ( http://www.punkhart.com/gparker/ ), fans are in for a real treat. As an added incentive, Buddha's Original Masters Series are available at a reduced price. So what are you waiting for? ( http://www.buddharecords.com )
