Chan Marshall is perhaps now as adept at dividing music camps as she is at capturing, and subsequently breaking the hearts of indie boys the world over. On Jukebox, Chan Marshall, the female behind the feline, picks up where she left off on 2006’s The Greatest – an undeniably old school album recorded in Memphis with soul session musicians famed for backing the likes of 1970s crooner Al Green. This was a drastic change in direction from the introspection and minimalism that characterised past releases/masterpieces such as Moon Pix and You Are Free.
With her rich voice once again accompanied by a full band, a more confident Cat Power continues to go from strength to strength on Jukebox; the days of onstage breakdowns, tearful outbursts, and general awkwardness now apparently are a definite thing of the past. The confidence and range carries over onto the record and reflects the maturation that comes hand in hand with the sobriety of an artist who once was famous for fleeing the stage in the mid-show, now spends time off in third world countries on humanitarian trips raising awareness for the need of clean water in India.
Jukebox comes eight years after Cat Power’s first covers record, creatively titled er, The Covers Record which featured reinterpretations of originals by the likes of The Rolling Stones and Lou Reed. Here, Jukebox finds Cat Power looking further back, taking on the likes of Billie Holliday, James Brown, and George Jackson. However common ground is found between the two albums, with both featuring Bob Dylan covers. In fact the one original song recorded for this album, Song For Bobby is about Bob Dylan and details the confusion of where respect for a musical peer ends and a school girl-like crush begins. Perhaps best illustrated by the recollection of a brief backstage meeting where she found herself faced with the man himself: “Oh how I wanted to tell you that I was just only 400 miles away… Backstage pass in my hand, giving you my heart was my plan / I wish I could tell you” sings Chan whilst doing her best Dylan impression.The album opens with New York, whilst originally made famous by Frank Sinatra, here behind a loose drumbeat, Chan’s distinctive voice picks up where The Greatest left off, injecting soul into an old show tune and reinventing it in the process. Her voice rises as she sings the famous line “If I can make it there I’ll make it anywhere…New York”, before seamlessly leading into the next track, Ramblin’ Woman. The fact that on initial listens most people won’t be able to tell where a Sinatra cover ends and a Hank Williams’ classic begins is perhaps as much a tribute to Chan, as it is to her backing band; the Dirty Delta Blues Band (including long time Cat Power contributor, Jim White on drums from Australia’s own Dirty Three). Here the band takes a backseat compared to the soul session musicians on The Greatest and while the arrangements fail to impress like the former, it does allow the real star of Jukebox, Chan’s voice, to shine.
James Brown’s “Lost someone” transports listeners to a half empty smoky bar in America’s Deep South, while on “Silver Stallion” Chan’s flawless voice croons over a gentle acoustic guitar. However the Janis Joplin and Joni Mitchell covers which close the album fall short of expectations, ending the album on a slightly sour note.
Any doubt still lingering about the transformation of Cat Power is well and truly extinguished by the reinterpretation of Moon Pix standout (and favourite Cat Power song of at least this humble reviewer), Metal Heart. Now based around a warm piano line in favour of the distant and haunting electric guitar line from the original, this is a completely different animal. Gone is the desperation and claustrophobic longing portrayed by her double tracked vocals from the original which dragged behind a jagged beat. While still an amazing song capable of tugging at the heart strings, this time around when Chan sings “I once was lost, but now can see” it’s strangely anticlimactic. She now comes across worldlier, more experienced, and wiser.
This song alone will perhaps be the poster child for disappointed fans who will be under whelmed by the steady, breezy feel that Jukebox flows by with. While confrontational songs may be a thing of the past, Cat Power is by no means mailing it in, she has simply matured into an artist who is now at the top of her game, and it’s hard to see most of her fans not following her along for the ride.
