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Leo Kottke - Clone Audio CD

A fair review of the Leo Kottke "Clone" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Leo Kottke reviews here, or go back to the Leo Kottke tabs.

Leo Kottke Band: Leo Kottke
Title: Clone
Rating:
Release Date: 2002-10-08
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Arko 2: Car Carrier Blues 3: From Pizza Towers To Defeat 4: Clone 5: The Collins Missile 6: Te Veo 7: Disco 8: June 9: I Am A Lonesome Fugitive 10: Clay 11: Strange 12: Middle of the Road 13: Whip 14: With

Fantastic
If you're a Kottke fan, you won't be disappointed. Fantastic music. Oh yea, Mike Gordon was great too.


Mis-match Misses the Mark
Kottke listener here, and one who is unmoved by the CD. Another 30+ yrs. I can't warm up to Gordon's reedy voice, and wish his electric bass sounded more acoustic, the better to blend with Leo's guitar, as on 'Te Veo. ' Better still, leave out the clunky bass altogether on tunes such as 'Arko' and 'Strange' and let Leo play alone. . .

Composition gets stretched thin here, too. 'Strange' adds nothing to Leo's first version from his 'Guitar Music' album. Neither 'June' nor 'Whip' has enough substance or emotion to stand as a well-developed tune--just noodling. 'Clay' is, in a word, bizarre. I can promise you, you won't clamor to hear it a second time.

Leo's unison vocal dub throughout 'Middle of the Road' is an odd choice; the lyrics are muddied by word flubs and general imprecision, while the bass is over-busy in back. (Yet the chord changes and bass drum accenting the chorus are the best twenty seconds on the disc. So just buy this one song for 99 cents online. )

Because Leo has amazed, delighted and inspired me for so long, I have continued to trot this CD out every 3 - 4 months and given it a listen, wondering what it is that I'm missing; thinking that maybe the "aha!" moment would come. Never has. This CD is a mistake. Not recommended.


An Amazing Collaboration
That may explain why I had never heard of Mike Gordon, until now. I've been a Kottke fan for more than thirty years. What a wonderful combination! Very witty lyrics, supported by fantastic musicanship, make this CD a creative masterpiece, in my view. If you want pure Kottke, this isn't the CD for you. But if your musical tastes bend toward the eclectic, you should hear this collection of slightly avante garde, but very entertaining, album of songs from two of the world's most creative and intelligent musicians.


A Clone Worth Having
Kottke and Gordon make a great pair, an odd couple that have obviously found kindred spirits in each other, in their quirky song selection and lucid interwoven acoustic instrumentation. A great collaboration! I can't wait to hear more. I feel Kottke is better off with someone to play against, keeping the sound more varied, and what Gordon brings to the mix with his wonderful songs, singing and bass sound is equally playful and new. Perhaps when the Gods clone their creations they come out as delightful recordings like this. . . I'm glad I got one.


Sometimes You Win...
Kottke is always pushing the envelope, never making the same album twice. And sometimes you lose. He has tried lots of experiments over the years -- within the limitations of being a virtuoso guitar player who doesn't read music and rarely plays anybody's music but his own.

Sometimes his experiments shine ("Dreams and All That Stuff") and sometimes they bomb (Kottke with orchestra, which remains unreleased to this day).

"Clone" is in the latter category. Sure, it sounds like Leo and Mike Gordon had a lot of fun in the studio, but their two radically-different styles never gel. The material here is not vintage Kottke, and is probably weaker than Mike's usual too.

If you're new to Kottke, don't start here. This is for completists like me only -- and I've already played it all I probably ever will.


You can see a complete list of all Leo Kottke discography, or go back to the Leo Kottke tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.

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