2014 – Harvest Records
By Phillip Smith; Mar 28, 2015
There’s something very
special about the latest supergroup, New
Basement Tapes. This collective of musicians,
consisting of Elvis Costello, Rhiannon Giddens (Carolina Chocolate
Drops), Taylor Goldsmith (Dawes), Jim James (My Morning Jacket), & Marcus Mumford (Mumford & Sons)
have joined forces to record fifteen tracks based on uncovered song lyrics
which were written by Bob Dylan in
1967 during the original Basement Tape sessions. Dylan credited with co-writer of each song on the album, does not
appear on any of the performances.
The somewhat spacy “Down on
the Bottom” kicks things off. This track
is co-written by Jim James, who also
by the way takes on the electric guitar and organ. I really like the fuzzy My Morning Jacket guitar licks James
dishes out during the bridge. This is
the kind of song that captivates me upon first listen. James
is also at the helm of “Nothing To It”, a poppy song about letting the flip of
a coin decide the fate of a thief. Under
the covers, this is ominous and sinister enough to be on Harvey Dent’s playlist.
I can’t steer away from “Kansas
City”, with writing credits given to both Mumford
and Goldsmith. Mumford nails the lead vocals on this ode
to torn hearts and letting go. Johnny Depp even makes an appearance to
play guitar on this one. Goldsmith revisits Kansas City on “Liberty
Street”. This story of hard times is solemnly
sung and beautifully played on piano. Goldsmith delivers again on the rootsy “Card
Shark”, a cute little ditty featuring Costello
on ukulele. This song has that feel-good
pleasantness to it that lures the listener to sing along. I like this one a
lot.
It’s so good to hear Elvis Costello tear it up both vocally
and electrically on guitar in “Six Months in Kansas City (Liberty Street)”. He brings to the table the same enthusiasm
and exuberance he had in his early years.
Title track, “Lost on the
River #20” beautifully concludes the album, with lovely vocals from Rhiannon flowing alongside stellar acoustic
guitar performances from Mumford and
Goldsmith. It’s hard to believe these Dylan songs haven’t been put to tape
and released before. They’re so good. Lost on
the River is nothing short of a masterpiece.
