Tooth Of Crime : T Bone Burnett : Review : Rolling Stone

The best song on T Bone's relentlessly noir new album is "Kill Zone," a lyrical, Roy Orbison-style ballad — which Orbison himself co-wrote right before his death in 1988. That fact only hints at the oddity of this collection: Burnett, best known as producer to the stars (Robert Plant/Alison Krauss, John Mellencamp) and curator of soundtracks (The Big Lebowski, O Brother, Where Art Thou?), started writing these songs years ago for a revamped production of Sam Shepard's 1972 play of the same name, about a washed-up rock star. Only bits were used, and Burnett didn't finish the songs until recently.

The bluesy result bristles with echoing spy-movie guitars, clattering layers of percussion and trippy, effects-altered vocals — Burnett pushes his trademark three-dimensional production into an almost hallucinatory vividness. And the lyrics are nearly as evocative, with Burnett issuing detective-novel threats ("I can stir you like a Bloody Mary") and spinning dystopian sci-fi fantasies ("I was conceived in a behavior station, light-years from civilization"). But too often, on songs such as the droney "Dope Island" (a duet with ex Sam Phillips), Burnett's melodies veer between off-puttingly strange and nonexistent. Where's Roy when you need him?

BRIAN HIATT

(Posted: May 15, 2008)

News and Reviews

Click "Copy Me" to add the RS.com Widget to your Facebook page, blog, MySpace page and more.

How to Play This Album

Click the play button.
Register or enter your username and password.
Let the music play!

No commitment.
It's FREE.

Track List

Play All

Your Turn

Give us your review of Tooth Of Crime

Review 1 of 1

4of 5 Stars

How many people can say they bought T-Bone's EP Trap Door on vinyl on it's original release in 1982? And did so while attending college (TCU) in his home stomping grounds of Fort Worth? I've been a long-time fan of his work, even through its preachiest points. This album shows why Mr. Burnett is such a successful and sought-after producer. Truly God is in the details, and I think he does an exceptional job of pulling out all the tricks in his producer's bag to create compelling soundscapes on every track, never overusing any one. I liked the Beatle-esque Kill Zone the best. Really nice stuff.

Jun 5, 2008 07:46:59

Previous Next