BILLY BRAGG & WILCO
Mermaid Avenue Vol.II (Elektra)
Reviewed by John Sekerka

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Methinks the warm reception of the first volume was more to do with the idea than with the execution. Taking the mountains of left over lyrics from the great Woodie Guthrie and setting 'em to music is just too juicy an idea not to salivate over. And though it had it's moments, the first installment was a bit of a stylistic mess. Overlook the uninspired title of the sequel and dig into this one, cuz the project is finally gaining steam. The unlikely tandem of Billy Bragg and Wilco still grates at times, but William has seen enough light to let Tweedy and company do their best Bob Dylan impersonation on most of this record to good effect. Surely Dylan is kicking his sorry ass at not exploring this goldmine. The hits are so good, as on the opening "Airline to Heaven" and the goodtime banjo picker "Joe DiMaggio Done It Again", that I can even stomach Bragg's out of water English accent on his contributions. I know it's a well worn cliché, but they just don't write 'em like that anymore (Jorge Posada's Done It Again?). Maybe next time Billy will step aside and let Wilco handle volume three.

© 2000 - John Sekerka