Published on Jan 8, 2001
If you read
last month’s review of Mitch
Ryder’s
How I Spent My Vacation, you’d know that a slew of albums
Ryder cut some years back have been re-released (and you’ve
probably figured out we’re looking at those albums here). You’d
also understand why I would be hesitant to sit through another one
of these, after the disturbing sexual imagery of “Cherry
Poppin'”.
The follow-up release,
Naked But Not Dead, seemed to suggest that Ryder had worked
out much of the anger that lined
How I Spent My Vacation, and he could finally concentrate on
making a decent album. While this disc isn’t perfect, it is a major
improvement.
While some people might not get a few of the references (such as
the dig against Elvis Costello on “Ain’t Nobody White”), you don’t
have to have full comprehension of what Ryder is talking about in
order to enjoy
Naked But Not Dead. Tracks such as “I Got Mine,” “Spittin’
Lizards” and “True Love” suggest to the listner that Ryder has
gotten things in order and was again ready to make music for
music’s sake.
This isn’t entirely true. Ryder had gone on a journey to clear
his head from his anger against the music industry (which resulted
in a five-year self-imposed hiatus), and
Naked But Not Dead represented just the next step in a
continuing trip. There are still some remnants of venom heard in
songs like “Future Looks Bright” (which could also be seen as
Ryder’s declaration of musical independence as well) and
“Hometown”. But to Ryder’s credit, these pills aren’t as difficult
to swallow for the listener.
Despite the progress that Ryder makes on
Naked But Not Dead, there still are a few moments of
weirdness that leave the listener unprepared – the strongest of
which come on “Future Looks Bright” and the two-and-a-half-minute
blast “I Don’t Wanna Hear It”. Ryder was working his way back to
the spotlight, but he hadn’t quite reached the goal yet.
Where I had difficulty recommending
How I Spent My Vacation despite the few good moments, I
don’t have difficulty recommending
Naked But Not Dead despite a few remaining speed bumps.
Whether or not Ryder would be able to carry this momentum forward,
we’ll have to wait and see until our next review. But after
listening to this disc, I’m not as afraid to explore the rest of
Ryder’s catalog for fear of what he might say.