Audio CD review:
Loudon Wainwright III - One Man Guy - The Best of 1982-1986

Loudon Wainwright III - One Man Guy - The Best of 1982-1986

Band: Loudon Wainwright III Title: One Man Guy - The Best of 1982-1986 Rating: Release Date: 05 September, 1994 Media: Audio CD Tracks: 1: Hard Day on the Planet 2: Your Mother and I 3: Reader and Advisor 4: Cardboard Boxes 5: One Man Guy 6: I Eat Out 7: 5 Years Old 8: Westchester County 9: I'm Alright 10: Not John 11: How Old Are You? 12: Acid Song 13: Dump the Dog 14: Career Moves 15: Fame and Wealth 16: Grammy Song 17: I.D.T.T.Y.W.L.M. 18: Ready or Not (So Ripe) 19: Synchronicity 20: Lost Love 21: Unhappy Anniversary

Customer Reviews A Great Songwriter! Wainwright is a very gifted songwriter whose intelligent lyrics rarely feels unimportant. This compilation covers Wainwright's 3 albums released for the Rounder label during 1982-86. His songs usually show engagement and honesty - and very often there's a great sense of sarcasm and humour in his lyrics. Some of his live-favourites come from this period, and I recently had the pleasure of seeing him perform live at the Bridgewater Hall in Manchester. Fine songs like "One Man Guy" and "IDTTYWLM" were in his highly entertaining performance. Other songs from this collection that stand out are the two heartfelt songs written for his children, "Your Mother and " and "Five Years Old". The opening track "Hard Day on the Planet", the acoustic country-ballad "Westchester County" and his John Lennon tribute are other favourites. Fine sleeve notes; recommended!. Not Loudon's best Started out well when I purchased "History," a classic. I'm a relative newcomer to LWIII and have been trying to work my way through his arsenal of music for some time now. Followed up with this one and was slightly disappointed. Then went on to get "Last Man on Earth" which is one of the most haunting, entertaining albums I think I've ever bought. I'm back on track and continuing to sift through the catalogue. I think this one faulters, though not because of the artist. The selection of songs from this period doesn't reflect the artist. Some great songs on here, no doubt. Perhaps it's because his albums deserve to be taken in their own context. I think this may be the reason he's stayed away from a big compilation. It wouldn't be a mistake to buy this one. It would be a better idea to buy each album that makes up this "best of" collection. . Loudon clear Besides, this disc focuses on his 4 years, and 3 albums with the Rounder label only. LWIII has released so much material over the years, it's easy to pick a "best of" release apart & trash it for not having this or that on it, but there's plenty of jewels on this disc. Some consider this period the peak in his career and, some, like myself consider his last 10 years his peak, but you can't deny that they've taken the very best of these 3 disc's to make up the 70-plus minutes of Loudon's take on "love relationships" phase. Man, this guy's a piece of work. After listening to this you realize that they just don't make "Singer Songwriters" like him anymore. I hope he lives to be a hundred. . . You can see a complete list of all Loudon Wainwright III discography, or go back to the Loudon Wainwright III tabs