Jon Cleary "Let's Get Low Down"

I'd love to be some extraordinary human being, who was completely unaffected by any kind of prejudice.  I'd love to be the kind of person who never judges a book by its cover.  Or more exactly, an album by its cover.

There are two things wrong with the album cover pictured above, from my perspective.  But before I tell you what they are let me show you this picture:

These are the boxes that represent the last, I don't know, 3 weeks of CDs that have been sent to Barbara Dacey and me for review.  There's 100-plus discs in there.  In this box you will find albums and CD singles from some artists that you know (like the new Bonnie Raitt single and a new Dr. John album).  And you'll find some albums and CD singles from artists that you've perhaps heard of and are excited to check out (like the new Kelly Hogan or Best Coast songs) and a whole lot of CDs from artists that neither you nor Barbara nor I have any familiarity with.

So yes, you approach the box with some priorities in mind.  If I'M excited about hearing something, because I've liked the artist's previous work or because I've read good things about them, then yes, those discs get heard first.  And you get to the others as best you can.

And just like shopping for food or clothes, the labels and packaging make a difference.  Is it on Anti- Records?  They send out quality stuff.  I'm going to check it out.  Did it come from an independent promo person who I believe has impeccable taste?  Top of the pile, then.

Did someone specifically ask me to listen to it and give them feedback?  Those are next.

What's left?  Well, usually it's some indie label stuff, some CDs that were sent to us by people who have never listened to the radio station (yeah, I'm probably not going to play that album of Sousa marches), and a whole lot of self-released records by artists just trying to get their music out there.

Those CDs do have a look to them.  To save on production costs (as any struggling artists does and should), the album covers are usually pretty simple.  They are not generally photographs.  And they only use a couple of colors.

Very often, the CD covers are designed by the artist himself/herself, or their friend, instead of by a professional graphic designer or by someone with an extensive background in marketing.

Should any of this presentation stuff matter?  No.

Does it matter?  Yes.  Despite my best wishes for full objectivity, it does matter.

So having shuffled past this Jon Cleary cd a few times in the boxes, my impression was that this CD would most likely end up in a pile of discs going to The Local Music Cafe, our indie artist show.

Speeding up that thought process?  The words "a capella."  We get a few cds every year, from college groups or whatever, with their fine a capella renditions of hits.  They are sometimes good, but rarely anything we'd play on a regular day.

Yeah, this record was destined to land on a shelf for Alison Hammond.

Thank goodness I'm not a total idiot, and I listened to it.

Holy Moly, this is a good record.

Now, I'm not a font nerd, so I missed that this is not an "a Capella" record.  It's called "Occapella," which is the name of an Allen Toussaint song.  In fact, all the songs on the record are Allen Toussaint songs.  He's one of America's great song writers!

Far from being a Capella, the album is filled with great New Orleans-style instrumentation.  And it features guest turns from both Bonnie Raitt and Dr. John!

Okay, so if you are a talented independent artist, who's got an album full of great renditions of classic American songs, featuring music business legends, for crying out loud, LET THE PEOPLE KNOW!

Even if you don't want to sully your album artwork, at least put a sticker on it.  Cleary has a great line that he uses elsewhere, "Having fun with the songs of Allen Toussaint."  Put THAT, and "featuring Bonnie Raitt and Dr. John" on the cover somewhere, and Music Directors, as well as folks who flip through the bins in record stores, will move you to the top of the pile a hell of a lot faster . . .


The single is "Let's Get Low Down" featuring Bonnie Raitt and Dr. John:




Learn a little more about the record, on Youtube.