I’ve seen similar comments on other threads about the This Is 40 songs, and I feel I have to give a little love to them—
When I first heard them as simple mp3 files from the web, I was also ‘meh,’ esp after the deluge of new and interesting stuff from SWS and OMS. But, I have done a 180 on these for these reasons-
1. I bought the This Is 40 soundtrack. It is a great collection of sometimes quirky, sometimes straight-up songs that totally hang together – the vision of Jon Brion is cohesive and evident, and if you listen to the soundtrack in its totality, I think you can see that LB’s contributions are spot-on, and really add to the whole. In fact, as nicely spaced as they are at 4, 8, and 12, I find them high points that I look forward to. And it’s nice to see LB in such good company with some very cool and diverse artists like Paul Simon, Paul McCartney, Avett Brothers, Ryan Adams etc, and has guitar credits on a couple of non-LB songs. In other words, it’s not like he just put out 3 new songs with no context – they seemed to be deliberately shaped for this collection, and in that sense, I think they’re great.
2. After the highly processed, high and whispery vocals on SWS, I really enjoyed the more mature, ‘natural’ tenor of LB’s current voice on these songs. It makes them more intimate, and I feel closer to the songs because of that. This is especially true of She Acts Like You – it’s 100% voice and guitar! Just what he was going for in recent OMS – and it’s beautiful. As a guitarist, I love how he takes a couple of simple motifs, and just puts little tweaks on them that are lovely. Simple, yes, and maybe I don’t see it being played in concert, but still, very very good.
3. She Acts Like You – My fave of these three…Such a great tune, great lyrics. At first listen, the words recalled an idea from Go Insane – she’s a lot like you – where LB is expressing torment with lovers. But now, in his older, wiser voice, he is not tormented or self-involved, but merely an observant parent, noticing (the inevitable) similarities between his daughter and his wife, and between his daughter and himself. It’s a generational shift, and a milestone for any parent to see themselves in their children, and I like hearing from that LB perspective (of course, this is just my take on the song - it could be totally off!). I also have a teenaged daughter, and something in this song really resonates for me. Even the reference to ‘all dressed up in blue’ brings to mind the endless pairs of blue jeans that are middle school uniform.
4. Sick Of You – I gotta believe that when/if Judd Apatow approached LB with the movie premise that a long-together couple have grown overly familiar with each other and seemed to have forgotten why they’re even together and could he contribute a song in that vein….that LB didn’t have to look very far for inspiration
…I think it’s kind of a tongue in cheek about his long relationship with SN. It’s not mean, more lighthearted, like a ‘shrug’ and oh well, it is what it is, almost amused. Especially bcz of the reference to ‘No one else could ever do’ – those words from so long ago have turned out to indeed be true, and he seems to be reflecting on that. Simple, but effective, and again, nice guitar.
So that’s my more than 2 cents about the This Is 40 songs – overall, I like em alot and think they’re solid songwriting and perfect for what they were meant to be, and I’ve put them into my favorite LB songs rotation on my ipod for sure
03-08-2013, 01:36 PM
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