Post Description

Rickie Lee Jones - Pirates (1981) [MFSL 2009]
 PS3 Rip | SACD DSD64 2.0 > 1-bit/2.8224 MHz | 38:40 minutes | Scans included | 24bit/96 kHz | Scans included | 725 MB

Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab # UDSACD 2040
Rickie Lee Jones' Pirates arrives like a cloudburst in the desert of Eighties formula pop music and recycled heavy-metal rock." So wrote Stephen Holden in Rolling Stone in his five-star review of the eclectic artist's sophomore record, a 1981 set that continues to defy eras and styles.


 After the critical (and commercial) success of her debut two years earlier, Rickie Lee Jones had a lot riding on her sophomore album, Pirates. From the opening track, "We Belong Together," Jones served notice that she was willing to challenge herself and experiment with more unusual, complex song structures. Her unique phrasing and style reflect her interest in beat poets and the bohemian lifestyle, and on this album she relies on more obscure imagery than the direct, detailed observations on comrades used on her first album. There are a wide range of musical influences represented (rock, jazz, soul), but the acoustic arrangements are more piano-based than most of her other albums. While there is an undercurrent of reflection on failed romances, Jones also reveals her playful side with songs like "Woody and Dutch." The musical and lyrical variety on the album is best represented in the album's centerpiece, "Pirates (So Long Lonely Avenue)," where she moves through mood and tempo changes with ease. Although the songs may not immediately grab the listener, the lyrical and musical complexities ultimately make this album more rewarding with every listen.  


Tracklist:

 01. We Belong Together
 02. Living It Up
 03. Skeletons
 04. Woody And Dutch On The Slow Train To Peking
 05. Pirates (So Long Lonely Avenue)
 06. A Lucky Guy
 07. Traces Of The Western Slopes
 08. The Returns