Various Artists
Kicks Joy Darkness: A Tribute To Jack Kerouac
»
Various Artists
Kicks Joy Darkness: A Tribute To Jack Kerouac
Rykodisc, 1997
RiYL: Juliana Hatfield, Beat Poetry |
The idea behind this seems flawed, though. It's upsetting the tribute concentrates mostly on Kerouac's poems. Sure, his poetry is strong, but his most impressive works are his novels, passages of which could have been read to music just as easily.
The contributors seem to have been picked with an eye on attracting younger consumers. This works both ways. Michael Stipe, always willing to put his voice on something, is so uninteresting he is laughable, but the following track by Steven Tyler outshines the bald singer's dry delivery.
Juliana Hatfield reads "Silly Goofball Poems" from "Poems Of All Sizes," in which most of the album's selected works originally appeared. Also from the book -- Kerouac's only book of poetry -- is "Hymn," performed by Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder. The singer's brooding voice is backed by accompanyingly morose music from Seattle instrumental space-rockers Hovercraft.
Kerouac's contemporaries stand in stark contrast to the younger contributors. William S. Burroughs' rough, gravelly voice is instantly memorable and the spook is fitting, as is the now-late Allen Ginsberg's reading of an unpublished work of Kerouac's.
Even with all the talent rounded up here, it is the author himself who delivers the best performance: a startling recording of "MacDougal Street Blues." Kerouac's voice rings with perfect inflection while Joe Strummer backs the poem with an electronic blues beat and keyboards. The resulting beauty is the kind that could only be found in Kerouac himself.
DAVID THOMAS |