I thought I would post a more in depth review I wrote of this record now that Mark brought it up as I agree that it is a very significant release in the year of music that is 1997: I find it astounding that an artist in their mid to late fifties can continue to forge a career that is relevant AND productive of great work. Take a look at Paul Simon's peers: Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, James Taylor, Van Morrison, Roger McGuinn, etc. I don't think anyone can argue that those artists are putting out work of a quality on par with their 60's work. Part of this is due simply to singing voice, Bob Dylan and Joni Mitchell, for example, simply can't sing like they used to. Anyway, I don't want to go on and on with these comparisons, but upon hearing Capeman and realizing the tremendous amount of work that went into the realization of this music, it just makes me wonder why age decimates the careers of some geniuses and pushes others onto new levels of greatness. Part of that feeling comes simply from the sound of this CD. While you can tell at first listen that this record was recorded in the 90's, it isn't tied to its time period the way classic records aren't. One of the wonderful things about music is that it can exist outside of time, and one of the marks of a great record is its ability to do so. For example, the doo wop doesn't sound like "90's doo wop" it sounds legitimate and real, even though doo wop is not a common musical idiom anymore. It is difficult for me to listen to any record without focusing in on the vocals and they sound excellent on SFTC, not only in performance but in how they were recorded. Want proof? Play Graceland, Rhythm of the Saints and SFTC back to back. Throughout the record, you hear that familiar voice a voice that I bet all of you couldn't recall a time in your life when you hadn't heard it, and you hear it in a crystal clear fashion, thus really making this feel like a worthy addition to an already prolific career. The music is nothing to balk at either: from the ecstatic celebration at the close of "Born in Puerto Rico", to the sinister piano that kicks off Vampires, to the Rhythm of the Saints-ish guitar that drives "Trailways Bus"... these are just great sounding moments, highlights from a great record. I guess the engineer deserves some credit for this but anyway, I would be curious to hear some other opinions about the sound of the record. The more I listen to SFTC, the more it begins to feel like an album instead of a mere snippet from a larger project. I grew more accustomed to "Satin Summer Nights", "Sunday Afternoon" and "Time is an Ocean", the three songs that scream out Broadway to me. "Born in Puerto Rico", "Adios Hermanos", "Vampires", "Trailways Bus" are classics in the canon of someone who may have already the market cornered on classic songs. The songs all establish a connection to Salvador Agron, without glorfying him for committing murder, which I think was ultimately a tightrope struggle in forging his story. As well as musical, there are some incredibly moving lyrical moments on this record (leaving me a bit surprised upon reading some murmurings that these lyrics are somehow less poignant than Simon's previous work). The "No one knows you like I do, No one knows your heart like I do" lyric in "Born in Puerto Rico" backed up with that heart wrenching flute, the beautifully sung "If I traveled the whole world, You guys would still be on my case" lyric in "Trailways Bus", and the "I think you'd have to be Jesus on the cross, to open your heart after such a loss" in "Can I Forgive Him?". These are just a few examples of lyrical beauty. Okay enough raving... Is this a perfect record? No. I don't think that was its intent. It is so diverse and ranging in its scope and discontinuous in its performances (meaning not having the same singer on each track, etc.) that I have a hard time imagining a listener loving every song all the way through. Nonetheless, I don't think that was its aim and there certainly isn't anything difficult to listen to on it. I don't really understand the inclusion of Virgil, the country-ish song narrated by a prison guard, but maybe his character is more essential to the plot than I realize. Anyway, I hope I haven't rambled on too long, I hope to hear more and more opinions as people grow more familiar with this record (and yes I have repeatedly used the term record because referring to a work of music as a CD will never seem right to me). steve matrick ----------------------------------------------------------------------- . This message was brought to you by the Sinister mailing list. . 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