By Henry Lipput
Philip Roth may very well be the greatest living American writer. His first book, Goodbye, Columbus, was published in 1959; and, since then, he has received, among many honors, the National Book Award, the Pulitzer Prize, and the Franz Kafka Prize. And although he has often been mentioned in the same breath as the Nobel Prize for Literature for many years, he has not (yet) been so honored.
However, in 2016, another American writer, a Robert Zimmerman, did receive the Nobel Prize for Literature and the first track "From philiproth@gmail to rzimmerman@aol.com" on Amy Rigby's smart and tuneful new album, The Old Guys, imagines an email that Roth might have sent to Zimmerman, aka Bob Dylan, following the ceremony in Sweden. "As you step out onto that Nobel stage / Spare a thought for the man who labors on the page / When you're standing in the spotlight where you've always been / I'll be alone with a pen, alone with a pen." And later: 'I could say it's luck the way you got there first / But denial is the worst. It's the worst."
Other songs about old guys include "Robert Altman." The "Mr. Soul"-like "New Sheriff” name checks Walter White from Breaking Bad; and, for the unnamed old guy of the rocking "One Off," (the arrangement and terrific playing reminds me of Elvis Costello's version of "[What’s So Funny 'Bout] Peace, Love, and Understanding") Rigby sings, "There'll never be another you" and "You made this cruel world better / Made me wish you could be my dad."
Two songs on the album deal with the subject of life as a touring musician (Rigby is currently on tour to promote The Old Guys, and you can find concert dates on her website). The lovely, acoustic "Back From Amarillo" is about returning from a tour -- "I've got dirty laundry in my suitcase and a bad case of 50-something blues" -- and the people and things she needs to take care of when she gets home.
Rigby played in Pittsburgh, her hometown, last year as part of a celebration of the 25th anniversary of her great, much-loved Diary Of A Mod Housewife album. "Playing Pittsburgh" is one of the most autobiographical songs on The Old Guys. "I left at sixteen 'cause I couldn't take more / Nobody tried to hold me back / They helped me pack and held the door / I've been around this world /I thought I paid my dues / But I’'m playing Pittsburgh tonight / I got the hometown blues." She's not the only one who left to pursue their art: "Andy Warhol's dead and in the ground / It's the only way they could get him back to town."
The Old Guys is Rigby's first solo album in twelve years and was recorded and produced by her husband, Wreckless Eric, in upstate New York. Wreckless Eric has been active since the late 70s (in fact, he was part of the Live Stiffs tour along with Nick Lowe and Elvis Costello), so I'm thinking he might be considered Rigby’s favorite old guy.
The Old Guys is out now on Southern Domestic Records.
No comments:
Post a Comment