Still Lookin Good to Me
The first take of a song can catch the magic of musical inspiration like lightning in a bottle--or so saysHowe Gelb, the Kerouac of hazy roots-rock. The prolific Gelb's latest exploration of that unvarnished ethic isStill Lookin' Good to Me; ostensibly a vehicle for his more countrified leanings, this fourth full-length from his hippie-cowboy outfit actually holds a genre-hopping blend of studio cuts, jams, and live tracks crammed with cameos from a range of fellow travelers. This ad-hoc approach sometimes seems sloppy, and the talents of Chan Marshall (Cat Power), Kurt Wagner (Lambchop), Jason Lytle (Grandaddy), andM. Wardare wasted on the likes of "The Muss of Paradise" (a tossed-off blues), "My Hoo-Ha" (an acoustic sketch), and "I've Been Working on the Railroad" (a ramshackle ramble through the children's tune). But Gelb's easy informality can also prompt performances of uncommon candor, as in theNeko Case-Richard Bucknerduet "Getting It Made" or several tracks that feature Gelb'sGiant Sand-mates Joe Burns and John Convertino ofCalexico.--Anders Smith Lindal