Eli and the 13th Confession
Consider the curious fate of singer-songwriter Laura Nyro's 1968 big-label bow: though it contained no less than three songs ("Stoned Soul Picnic," "Sweet Blindness," and "Eli's Coming") that became hits (the first two forFifth Dimension, the last forThree Dog Night), Nyro's own endlessly influential collection barely dented the Top 200. And in an era of supposed pop emancipation and enlightenment, Nyro was booed off the stage at the vaunted Monterey Pop Festival a year earlier. Those facts merely hint at the true gifts and stubborn instincts of an artist who took her cue for hook writing from the Brill Building's prime, then seamlessly fused it to her far-ranging passions for soul, jazz, gospel, and no small amount of personal drama.Carole Kingwas seldom this exotic and compelling, norJoni Mitchellso pop perfect. "Once It Was Alright Now (Farmer Joe)" even recallsBrian Wilson's most ambitious musical gambits, its suite format playfully interspersing three different tunes and styles, standing the standard verse-chorus-verse form on its head in the bargain. Long a treasured musical touchstone for other artists (Nyro influenced everyone fromPhoebe SnowtoTori Amos), this reissued edition now contains beautiful, spare solo demos for "Lu," "Stoned Soul Picnic," and "Emmie" as bonus tacks, along with newly penned liner notes.--Jerry McCulley