Rare & Well Done (Greatest & Most Obscure Recordings 1964-2001)
Al Kooper's soulful stew of blues, gospel, rock, and jazz is as American  as baseball--and every bit as ironic, allegorical, surprising, and downright  fun. Though best known as a sideman (that's his trademark organ riff onBob Dylan's "Like a  Rolling Stone"), songwriter  (Gary Lewis's "This  Diamond Ring"), band founder  (the Blues Project,Blood, Sweat & Tears),  and producer (everyone fromB.B. KingtoJoe ElytoLynyrd Skynyrd), this  revealing double-disc anthology explores Kooper's rich and diverse career as a  performer.Rareoffers up demos, outtakes, and other rarities that wind  from his first '60s single through three decades and a madly eclectic array of  projects that include a down-tempo revisitation ofAnn Peebles's "I Can't  Stand the Rain,"XTC's "Making Plans for  Nigel" done as a 1900's English music-hall number (and rejected for a tribute  album astooobtuse!), a glorious, pioneering horn-band take on "Hey  Jude," a soundtrack outtake from theCrime StoryTV series, and a couple  of decades' worth of songs rife with his always unpredictable blues and pop  instincts.Well Donecollects better-known solo tracks and recordings  from Blood, Sweat & Tears, the bestsellingSuper Session("Albert's  Shuffle"), and the Blues Project. Veteran journalist Jaan Uhelszki's notes  manage the not-inconsiderable feat of both concisely chronicling and  underscoring the import of Kooper's largely unsung legacy. This is a multidisc  anthology that not only lives up to the medium's usually unfulfilled potential,  but may just leave you craving more.--Jerry McCulley