REVIEW: Various, No Boundaries - A Benefit for the Kosovar
Refugees
- Mike Bederka
With an album such as this, you almost feel guilty criticizing it. What kind of heartless person would disrespect these artists? The Kosovar refugees have lost everything and now a bunch of bands donated some tracks to help them out. What's not to like? Well, how about a third of the album?
But for the most part, "No Boundaries" is quality mix of rare, live and unreleased tracks from old-timers and some fairly fresh meat. Neil Young provides a riveting live version of "War of Man" from the "Harvest Moon" album. When he utters, "No one wins / It's a war of man," it's hard to ignore the relevance. And when his grandchildren, Pearl Jam, bookend the album with a pair of covers, the band's dipping popularity should stop dead its track. "Last Kiss," the 1964 hit by J. Frank Wilson and the Cavaliers, has been gracing radios for the past few months. And their rocking version of Arthur Alexander's "Soldier of Love" should also do the same. Rage Against the Machine equally deserves some recognition for the turn-the-stereo-up cover of Bruce Springsteen's "The Ghost of Tom Joad." Honorary mention goes to The Wallflowers and Oasis for playing some actually decent, non-whiny numbers.
As for the flip side, Bush and Jamiroquai get the yesterday's news honors. Bush does the acoustic (!) thing on "Come Down." Great, all we need, a bland version of an already bland song. C'mon guys, you pump out singles like they are going out of style. I'm sure you have something new and tasty in your collection. And that guy with the big hat offers the pointless, instrumental number "Wolf in Sheep's Clothing." Hey Jamiroquai, just stick to making slick videos okay. Korn and Ben Folds Five also do nothing for themselves with their disappointing additions to "No Boundaries." Korn's remix of "Freak on a Leash" is mediocre, and Ben Folds' ditty "Leather Jacket" meanders nowhere and lacks the band's usual fire.
Of course the cause is greater than the music, but at the very least you wished some of the artists would have put up more of a fight.
