Bob sips some ‘Big Whiskey’ : A critique (pt I)

What you’re about to read is a late night thought process leading you through the humble opinions of yours truly. I don’t know much and the little I do know can easily be described as uninteresting…but in case you are interested, here’s what I was thinking about…

I remember quite clearly a cool spring day in 1995. I had just received a CD from Columbia House as part of my “get-10-free-as-long-as-I-buy-10-in-the-next-two-years” deal. I wasn’t expecting a CD that day, but when I strolled down the pavement to my parents mailbox, I was surprised to see that familiar cardboard box waiting for me. Inside, “Under The Table and Dreaming.” I grabbed my CD Walkman, took a seat on the white, plastic furniture living in the back porch and began my usual CD ritual - start at track 1 and as soon as I lost interest in a song, move on to track 2.  I listened to the entire CD that afternoon and couldn’t stop. I immediately ordered “Remember Two Things.” I waited in line for “Crash.” I got an early copy of “Before These Crowded Streets.” I was in line at midnight for “Live At Luther College.” My concert numbers started reaching the 20’s, 30’s and beyond. I was disappointed with “Everyday,” bootlegged “The Lilywhite Sessions,” was hopeful for “Busted Stuff” lifted by “The Central Park Concert” and then let down with “Stand Up.”

The Dave Matthews Band recent studio releases have been…well, awful. Perhaps a song or two here and there have given me that unique listening experience that only The Dave Matthews Band can give, but all in all, I’ve been skipping tracks quite often…until now.

The Dave Matthews Band’s 6th studio release, “Big Whiskey & The GrooGrux King” took 3 listens but for the first time since “Before These Crowded Streets,” I was excited about almost every track. It’s been a while, but I’m getting to learn new DMB songs that I love, want to know the words to, and want to see performed live. It’s fun. Of course there are many things I’m wishing were better about this album, but start to finish, on the average, DMB did well for themselves and for the memory of their friend and collaborator, the late Leroi Moore.

That’s all for now. Later this week I’ll get more specific with the tracks. So if you’re still interested in the musical critiques of this grateful singer-songwriter, come on back…there’s plenty more ~ bob