Man, what can I say about John Prine except that he's just untouchable? At the core of the guy's work is empathy; he's capable of irony when called for, but the genius of Prine is that he always treats his subjects with compassion and respect, be it the junkie vet "Sam Stone" or the poster children for loneliness and isolation, "Donald and Lydia." Even his indictment of jingoism "Your Flag Decal Won't Get You Into Heaven Anymore" showcases that aforementioned snark with an aw-shucksy undercurrent of generosity and humor. Always loved this guy's music. Great stuff.
Some other thoughts:
#459, EPMD's Strictly Business: How did I miss these guys the first time around? This is a great record. Eric and Parrish draw heavily on funk and soul samples from the likes of Kool and the Gang, Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding and Rick James, but mix it up with Pink Floyd, Steve Miller and ZZ Top, all over some very capable beats. Their languid yet confident emceeing bridges the gap between old school B-boy and Gangsta. I'll be giving this one another listen.
#460, Alice Cooper's Love It to Death: The self-proclaimed Busby Berkeley of rock and roll, Cooper teamed with producer Bob Ezrin on his third, and breakout, record. While "I'm Eighteen" exemplifies the blue collar Detroit rock he built his early career on, tunes like "Black Juju" and "Hallowed Be My Name" presage the shock rock glory days to come.
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