Oh! The Grandeur

Amazon.com
Violinist Andrew Bird earned well-deserved acclaim for his 1998 debut CD, Thrills, and its cabaret-meets-hot-jazz energy. Oh! The Grandeur is the much-anticipated follow-up and is every bit as quirky and darkly perfect. It's got Bird's astringent fiddle cutting a wide swath through Colin Bunn's riff-strummed and breezy cool guitar and the clomping rhythms of Josh Hirsch's bass and Kevin O'Donnell's drums. And it's got Bird's round-edged voice rolling over lyrics that are alternately moody and slaphappy. The music is clearly indebted to the hot club jazz that's been built on the duo of Stephane Grappelli and Django Reinhardt, but it also owes props to Kurt Weill and even Bob Wills. Bird might not ever make the morning talk show circuit in the U.S. (unlike his former band, Squirrel Nut Zippers), but he's got a lock on taking a wealth of American traditions and rolling them into an odd, endearing whole. --Andrew Bartlett

Oh! The Grandeur,Andrew Bird's Bowl of Fire,Rykodisc,Pop,Popular Music,Retro Swing,Rock,Rock/Pop

Oh! The Grandeur

Average customer rating:

Old time is new again
Wouldn't buy this one again!
uuhhhmmmm
loverly!!!!!!!!!!!!
A moody, quirky, jazzy oddball! It's own universe!

Oh! The Grandeur
Andrew Bird's Bowl of Fire
Manufacturer: Rykodisc
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Rock | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music

Retro Swing | Swing Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

Thrills
The Swimming Hour
Weather Systems
Andrew Bird & the Mysterious Production of Eggs
Armchair Apocrypha

ASIN: B00000JZ24
Release Date: 1999-08-24

Tracks:

Candy Shop
Tea And Thorazine
Wishing For Contentment
Wait
The Idiot's Genius
Vidalia
Beware
Dora Goes To Town
Feetlips
And So...
Coney Island Shuffle
Respiration
(What's Your) Angle?
The Confession
Beware (Reprise)/A Drinking Song (In The Grande Style)

Amazon.com

Violinist Andrew Bird earned well-deserved acclaim for his 1998 debut CD, Thrills, and its cabaret-meets-hot-jazz energy. Oh! The Grandeur is the much-anticipated follow-up and is every bit as quirky and darkly perfect. It's got Bird's astringent fiddle cutting a wide swath through Colin Bunn's riff-strummed and breezy cool guitar and the clomping rhythms of Josh Hirsch's bass and Kevin O'Donnell's drums. And it's got Bird's round-edged voice rolling over lyrics that are alternately moody and slaphappy. The music is clearly indebted to the hot club jazz that's been built on the duo of Stephane Grappelli and Django Reinhardt, but it also owes props to Kurt Weill and even Bob Wills. Bird might not ever make the morning talk show circuit in the U.S. (unlike his former band, Squirrel Nut Zippers), but he's got a lock on taking a wealth of American traditions and rolling them into an odd, endearing whole. --Andrew Bartlett

Customer Reviews:

Old time is new again.......2006-03-29

Quirky and bizarre as we've come to expect from Bird, but sounding more like Venuti and Lang or the Hot Club of Paris than ever before, Bowl of Fire and their leader managed to not only hit the high standard they set for themselves with "Thrills," they surprassed it in both songwriting and playing.

As usual, the lyrics are often nonsensical and humorous ("Dora Goes to Town", "(What's Your) Angle"), even when the subject isn't ("Tea and Thorazine", about autism). The melodies will stay in your mind for weeks to come ("Wishing for Contentment"). The band is tighter than SNZ ever were, and the solos show a real appreciation for 20s/30s hot music. This band could play circles around some others born in the swing fad of the late 90s, and could probably sit right in with any of the small combos they idolize. "Candy Shop," at last minute addition to the record, shows the band in what must have been a quickly thrown together studio session for an addition to a movie soundtrack but is nonetheless impeccably played.

Gone, however, are the country blues songs that ended "Thrills", but a consistant theme flows through the record, something that felt missing from the first album. The production also manages to hold a retro aspect without becoming muddy or too lo-fi for the casual listener. A few songs from the middle and end drag from lack of energy or creativity, but the good stuff far outweights the bad.

Wouldn't buy this one again!.......2005-01-30

Worst cd that I have ever purchased. I'm tossing it.

uuhhhmmmm.......2004-08-14

i actually have never listened to this cd because i keep focusing on the absolutely amazing cover art courtesy of Chris Ware (Jimmy Corrigan, etc.). so i give it 4 stars for the art.

loverly!!!!!!!!!!!!.......2004-06-03

reccomded for fans of the nut zippers, cowboy junkies, tom waits and all other sweet muisc from all over the place. folksy and brilliant!

A moody, quirky, jazzy oddball! It's own universe!.......2004-01-30

I love this album- Andrew Bird's first two releases are remarkable, but this (his sophomore release) was, I think, an overall step-up from his debut, "Thrills." One of the hardest things I had to do last fall was select which songs from his first two albums would go on a burnt CD mix... There were too many...

I came to Mr. Bird when I discovered that he played violin on SqrlNtZprs albums. I wanted more SNZ, loved the directions they pursued with 'Perennial Favorites' but didn't care at all for 'Bedlam Ballroom.' The production, I felt was all wrong and stood in the way of any judments I could make concerning the album. It sounded slick, polished- and I couldn't stand that. So I tracked down some solo releases by individual members of the Zippers and ended up with the pleasure of Mr. Bird's music. When I first got this CD it didn't leave my CD player for a week and a half, which is rare, as I'm an impatient, moody, feckless, hard to please music aficianado...

Genre-wise this is all over the place, certainly not jazz or swing (not entirely at least, though by grounding himself in the music of a bygone era, Mr. Bird invokes a moody, theatrical vibe that stays with you). All the players know their place and everyone works tightly to maintain the overall ambience of the album. The mood, I feel is equal parts Kurt Weill, Tom Waits and something that is Mr. Bird's own entirely. His voice is on the good side of competent with a (fake?) slight accent and the perfect diction of singers from the 30's. In my head I imagine him looking like the singer from 'The Hudsucker Proxy,' from the scnene where all the women fawn over him (yeah, I know it takes place in the fifties which is the wrong time period, but still...).

The earthy, folk-tinged, gypsy melodies that he conjures from his violin are beautiful to hear and call to mind strange images and memories. His playing is sublime. The lyrics are intelligent, playful, at times macabre and surreal. The CD comes with a tiny notebook of liner notes and lyrics, explanations, etc, done up in a style that seems to be in league with the era that he's channeling.

Some stand out tracks are 'Beware' (very Tom Waits-esque lyrics, a dark and tempestuous little number), 'Feetlips' (sung with an almost Hungarian, Bela Lugosi accent), 'Tea and Thorazine,' (quite eerie), '(What's Your) Angle,' (a rousing, jazzy, upbeat swinging little tune)... Hell, they're all good.