OFF THE RECORD: Cat Power - Jukebox

(Courtesy of Matador Records.)

I first came across Cat Power a little over a year ago. I was having one of those awful toss-and-turn nights and ended up flipping on the TV to find the highlights of the Austin City Limits Festival playing. Chan Marshall, better known as Cat Power, was singing a beautiful and desperately sad song called “The Greatest” in a thin, smoky voice that seemed in danger of floating off into the ether. I went back to bed and bought the album the next day. It’s now one of my favourite albums of all time.

Jukebox, however, is a different affair altogether. Whilst The Greatest saw Ms. Marshall surrounded by a veritable sea of musicians, Jukebox sees Chan backed by the four-piece Dirty Delta Blues, augmented with the odd guest musician here and there. And it’s a covers album.

But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. The first five songs kick off the album in high gear. Cat Power’s re-imagining of “New York” is short and soulful, while “Ramblin' (Wo)man” takes the dark lyrics of the Hank Williams original and deftly evokes the loneliness within them. “Metal Heart”, a Cat Power original that first appeared on 1998’s Moon Pix, builds to a heady climax, as does “Aretha, Sing One For Me”, while “Silver Stallion” makes the most out of the Blues’ folksy small band dynamic, bringing to mind images of burnt-out cigarettes and riding off into the sunset.

Disappointingly, after the bravura opener, the album loses its way. “Lost Someone” just limps out of the speakers with none of the swagger of the James Brown version, and “Lord, Help the Poor and Needy” is the epitome of filler. Thankfully, Jukebox gets back on track with a soulful cover of Bob Dylan’s gospel era “I Believe in You”. The band sounds tight and focused, recording engineer Stuart Sikes pulls a magnificent 70’s classic rock crispness out of Jim White’s drum track, and Chan lets her love of the classic Dylan song shine through, sounding alive and energized. The only problem is that it fades out just as the band starts to let loose.

Following that is another one of the album’s highlights, “Song to Bobby”, which is essentially a love letter from Cat Power to Bob Dylan set to music. But after that touching homage, Jukebox slides off the map for good. “Don’t Explain” drags, “Women Left Lonely” is background music to wash the dishes to, and while Joni Mitchell’s “Blue” is a great song, as the closer on Jukebox, it leaves something to be desired.

It’s not The Greatest, but for an album mostly made up of covers, it succeeds surprisingly often.