Opinion on this album is likely to be pretty split, depending on whether you feel you are in on the joke or whether you think the joke's on you. People who listen to Oldham's music for sport treat his as a facade - a normal guy hiding behind a big persona and an even bigger beard. People who listen to Oldham's music for fun find warmth, charm, and honesty in his stories, even if (like Jesus) they are just stories. So having Oldham approach 10 pseudo-classics - with critics' "darlings" Tortoise providing the backing band no-less - is enough reason to take cover from the impending shitstorm. No doubt this release takes a lot of audacity, and some will take that audacity the wrong way.
In that regard, Oldham and the Tortoise boys make a wise choice in avoiding songs that quote-unquote shouldn't be covered. It's hard to imagine a bunch of people complaining "How dare they do that to the Boss?" (although I've already seen someone say as much). The boys' take on "Thunder Road" slows it down to a steady churn, allowing Oldham's simmering vocals to power the song, and, really, the song is a perfect compliment to Oldham's persona. "All the redemption I can offer girl is beneath this dirty hood" - much like Oldham's wolf among wolves, Springsteen's persona in "Thunder Road" isn't offering any sort of love or elopement. Contrary to "Born to Run," there's no romance, no connection with the girl, just a way out. And even slowed down with Clarence's sax replaced by Tortoise's squeaky squiggle, once it reaches the bridge, the song still is able to overpower you.
While this is just as much a Tortoise album as it is an Oldham album, the barest songs that sound most like Oldham's material have the greatest resonance. The Melanie cover "Some Say (I Got Devil)" is amazing - a simple dirge with minimal accoutrements that would fit in well with Oldham's acoustic country stuff. While it's funny to hear Oldham sing "I'm just a girl in trouble," the hauntingly simple lyrics give off so much sadness and despair. Richard Thompson's "The Calvary Cross" also comes off great - its minimal arrangement providing the melody of the original but giving Oldham's voice enough room to roam (love it or hate it). The cover of Elton John's "Daniel" gets a bit more of a Tort-ization, but still sounds fantastic. Oldham's voice is heavily distorted, sounding lower and warbly, but it is set beside only a few teetering synthesizer fluctuations, allowing Oldham to replicate Elton as best he can.
Also included are two somewhat newer songs - "Love is Love" by Lungfish and "On My Own" by Quix-o-tic. Most Lungfish songs are based on a simple chord progression with only a small change between repetitions. So what better way to further deconstruct their style of punk than to turn the same chords into NiN-style industrial. Tortoise's version of Lungfish doesn't do much for the song, but it's an interesting take, at least. Tortoise's version of Quix-o-tic is the drabest song on the album. It's similar to the Melanie song in that they're taking a woman/girl's words of sadness and loneliness and casting them as a slow country song, but this one's got a bit more of the prairie and the stars in it, and stretches out too far to keep my interest.
A few songs are downright silly. One of them is a Devo cover, so perhaps that's the highest of compliments. Devo's "That's Pep!" gets an awkward off-kilter cover with near-random bursts of cymbal explosions. Oldham sounds out of place singing with his normal Kentucky slur but, for the most part, gives his all. It's... ummm... peppy, but a weak point to the album. The cover of Don Williams "Pancho" (of The Cisco Kid) is also downright ludicrous. But I love it. And I find myself singing it to myself all the time now. Thanks a lot Billy. As sappy as the original, but all the better for it.
Filling out the album are the two of the most faithful covers (as far as I can tell), "It's Expected I'm Gone" by The Minutemen and "Cravo E Canela" by Mitlon Nascimento. I don't know much about Nascimento, but this version fits in well with the Gilberto Gil and Os Mutantes Brazilian pop that I do know. Jeff Parker adds a crunchy guitar sound to the main riff, and Oldham tries his best to sound soft and flow with the music (I find myself wondering if Sam Prekop couldn't have made a guest spot). The Minutemen song also is spirited and quite nice. Perhaps Jeff Parker is a secret hero of these recordings, as the guitar sound again stands out - from the screeching, lumbering bridge to the elastic, searing chorus.
Perhaps if all the covers were as faithful as these two, the album would have to be dissected more carefully and patiently. But it's not. The Brave and the Bold was born from a joke between Oldham and members of Tortoise, and the album is begging for you not to take it seriously. Just enjoy it, man. If the Boss has any problems with how they butchered "Thunder Road," let him take it up with Oldham and Parker personally.
