Rodney Crowell
The Outsider
(Columbia)
The Music Box's #9 album of 2005
First Appeared in The Music Box, August 2005, Volume 12, #8
Written by John Metzger
With the release of The Outsider, Rodney Crowell successfully has
completed his transformation from a formidable hit-maker for Nashville’s
contemporary country scene into a misfit songwriter whose bristling, rock ’n‘
roll-laden intensity rivals that of fellow Texans Joe Ely and Steve Earle. In
fact, those unfamiliar with Crowell’s past might find it difficult to believe
that the same guy who crafted the garage-infused jangle of Say You Love Me
also penned chart-topping tunes for the likes of Crystal Gayle and The Oak Ridge
Boys. Although Crowell eventually subdues the broiling angst that begins The
Outsider, his edginess doesn’t dissipate until after he lays waste to
hedonistic greed in The Obscenity Prayer (Give It to Me) and slathers the
title track’s dichotomous views of the world in an ominous brew of swampy soul.
Still, as he pulls back on the throttle and settles into the sort of folk-pop
grooves that draw equally from the likes of Roy Orbison, Tom Petty, George
Harrison, and Bob Dylan — so much so that Crowell sounds as if he might be
auditioning for a spot in the Traveling Wilburys — his lyrics continue to strike
their targets with devastating force. Most notable is the collection’s
centerpiece Don’t Get Me Started, a crunchy, barroom diatribe that
lambastes America’s corporate-driven culture. Yet, even Dylan’s Shelter
from the Storm is shaded with new meaning. Brilliantly reincarnated as a
startlingly poignant duet with Emmylou Harris, the song transcends its
storyline, and instead of providing respite for the lovesick, it offers comfort
for the downtrodden who are stuck within a world gone mad. Indeed, in crafting
what essentially is a travelogue of his recent overseas jaunts, Crowell uses
The Outsider as a means of coming to grips with what it’s like to be a
stranger in a strange land. That he’s referring not to the foreign countries
that he is touring but rather to the place that he calls home is a telling
depiction of how unsettled life within the U.S.A. has become. 
The Outsider is available from Barnes & Noble.
To order, Click Here!
Ratings
1 Star: Pitiful
2 Stars: Listenable
3 Stars: Respectable
4 Stars: Excellent
5 Stars: Can't Live Without It!!
Copyright © 2005 The Music Box