I’m a bit worn out after a hard day at work
but I haven’t reviewed an album since Saturday and I’m keen to keep the Odyssey
sailing.
Disc 1239 is… Don’t Try This at Home
Artist:
Billy Bragg
Year of Release: 1991
What’s up with the
Cover?
A collection of helpful public signs. Clockwise from left we have: “Wait Here”,
“Caution: Unbalanced Teeter-Totter”, “Decapitation Hazard” and “Divorcee Soccer
League”.
My cover of the album is a bit different, as I own a 2006 special edition
re-issue, but I prefer to stick with the original cover so that’s what I’m
featuring.
How I Came To Know
It: I
believe this album was a birthday gift from my friend Nick many years ago. It
sparked a serious run on Billy Bragg albums, so many thanks to Nick!
How It Stacks Up: I have 9 Billy Bragg albums. Of those, “Don’t
Try This at Home” comes in at #4 which doesn’t earn it a medal but does earn it
respectability. I feel like “Respectability” is the kind of word that would
make a good Billy Bragg song. But I digress…
Ratings: 3 stars but almost 4
Sometimes Billy Bragg is political, and other times he’s just a sappy
romantic, but he’s best when he’s a bit of both. On “Don’t Try this at Home” he
finds the right balance of these two ingredients but makes a meal too big to
eat in one sitting.
Bragg is a folk rocker with a punk edge. He’s like Frank Turner’s kindly
uncle; not less edgy, just having the benefit of a bit more experience under
his belt. “Don’t Try This at Home” is him transitioning from his early street
busker sound into a more complex studio savvy approach. I enjoyed watching the
two parts of his career come together. They don’t collide so much as they twine
around one another, making each other stronger in the process.
The album opens with “Accident Waiting to Happen” a vintage
Bragg song, jaunty, edgy, brash and unapologetically political. There are plenty
more that follow in the same vein, Bragg never being a shrinking violet when it
comes to giving his opinion. “Accident
Waiting to Happen” is the best of the bunch though, as he beats chords out
of his guitar and lets his English accent soar over top of it.
On “Sexuality” Bragg calls for
tolerance and diversity on a song with a jaunty Cure-like feel to it. It is
actually cowritten by Johnny Marr, but I’m going with the Cure because it was
too upbeat to be a Smiths’ song.
There are touching tributes to his father (“Tank Park Salute”) that’ll put a lump in your throat and anthems
for English soccer fans (“God’s
Footballer”) that won’t – unless you root for Wolverhampton. I do not.
The album’s absolute standout, however, is “Everywhere” an anthem about the Second World War as seen through the
eyes of two childhood friends. One, a man destined to die fighting the Japanese
in the Philippines, the other a Japanese American jailed for no reason other
than his heritage. Bragg connects the two through completely different experiences
that both exemplify the horror of war. The ending gets me every time:
“I never got home, my platoon was
never saved
That little fox hole became my
island grave
Lee got out of jail but a
prisoner he remained
Till he ended his own life to
lose that ball and chain”
“Everywhere” is one of my
all-time favourite songs – Billy Bragg or otherwise – and a masterclass in telling
a life’s story in five minutes or less. Or in the case of “Everywhere”, two life stories.
The biggest issue I have with this record is that at 16 songs it is too
long. Knock it back to a reasonable 12 and this could be Bragg’s greatest work,
but all that extra stuff dilutes the best the album has to offer.
This re-release also had a bonus disc of 14 tracks. That is a lot of
bonus tracks, and most of it is just demos that don’t sound as good as the
finished product. However, “Piccadilly
Rambler” is a pretty sweet track about an indigent wanderer, and Natalie
Merchant does a couple of guest vocals that give songs a novel approach. The
best part is that since they are all on a separate disc you can play them or
skip them as you wish. Other artists releasing bonus tracks could learn a lot
from this practice.
While the record is a little bloated, for the most part wears it well and
is a fine example of the brilliance, passion and optimism that is Billy Bragg.
Best tracks: Accident Waiting to Happen, Moving the Goalposts,
Everywhere, Sexuality, Tank Park Salute, Body of Water
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