Glitter in the Gutter Reviews

• Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty and Jesse Malin ...

  
  By ASOJMA310Z6T7 on 2007-04-14
  Third albums have been keys to success for the first two artists mentioned in my title. "Glitter in the Gutter" is so strong, it could do the same for Jesse.
  
  Every one of the 14 songs are completely different, fresh, and totally captivating. He picks you up, slaps you in the face, and puts you back down -- this meaning "listen closely" with the 1-2 punch of "Don't Let Them Take You Down" and "In The Modern World". Also, Jesse clearly didn't settle for status quo on this disc, as so many artists do. Cases in point - "Tomorrow, Tonight" and "Love Streams" are fantastic songs, and so very different from a lot of the other stuff Jesse has recorded and are illustrations of how Jesse is willing to take risks and do something different. "Black Haired Girl" is mentally exciting (just imagine being the guy in the song)and "Prisoners of Paradise" is the song for all you "slaves to the beat".
  
  The entire album is just brilliant. Jesse and the band hit the ball out-of-the-park on this disc! Listening to this record and also being a life-long Springsteen fan, I can't help but draw an interesting parallel ... 32 years ago, when Bruce released Born to Run, his 3rd record, it changed everything. While most of us know how great the Boss' first two records were, it was the 3rd one that opened up a new chapter and changed his career in big ways. I can't help but think in the same way when I listen to "Glitter in the Gutter".
  
  Clearly, "The Fine Art of Self Destruction" and "The Heat" are awesome records and stand on their own merit as great works of art. But when listening to this disc, something tells me that the days of seeing Jesse in small clubs might be numbered (note to those who have always wanted to see him live: DO IT NOW!). This disc has all the potential to springboard him to an entirely different level of public attention. The last line of Thunder Road keeps ringing in my ears..."It's a town full of losers, and I'm pulling out of here to win...."
  
  Congratulations, Gender Bender! Count me in, like Dee Dee Ramone. Listening to this disc is like a "7-Day Weekend" ... keep up the fine art.
  
  

• At least 7 full listens, and it's still growing on me.

  
  By A29ECIGILCOG5Y on 2007-03-26
  I'm not really sure what to make of this album yet. It's very strange, because I've rarely listened to an album this many times and still felt I wasn't understanding the entire picture. I'm not saying that this is a complex album with many layers to dig through to fully appreciate, but it's very interesting that I have listened to it many times, and while liking it, and also thinking it was very straight forward overall, I still keep listening to it over and over, and each time feeling something different for each song. My first impression was that it was just going to be an average album, maybe okay for summer driving here and there, but I kept wanting to listen to it, and now I have found myself thinking about the album constantly, wanting to hear it from start to finish once more, and then again and again.
  
  I will not say that this is as good as "The Heat," because that is one of my favorite albums of all-time, and this new album probably isn't as good as "The Fine Art.." because Malin's first two albums were as clever and melodic as almost anything else I have ever heard. But somehow "Glitter In The Gutter" is just as impressive in it's own way, and to be honest, it is a great album for the warm weather; literally as the weather gets warmer here in Indiana, I find this album to be greater and greater. My favorite tracks: #2,#3, #6, #12, #13. The song "Black Haired Girl," track 6, is perhaps one of the best songs to drive to in the summertime, especially since my girlfriend has dark hair. And a quick word to people who listen to Jesse Malin only once/twice: give it a chance, his voice grows on you quickly, and once you appreciate his work you start to realize that his songs and his style are very unique, because if anyone else sang his songs it would not sound nearly as good.
  
  I also read a review about him being a "cry baby," and while it was a favorable review, that is such a pathetic review of an album. It is your opinion that he is not as good as the people you mentioned as his influences, and maybe most people would agree with you because they haven't heard of Jesse Malin, but while I love most of the people Malin was influenced by, I still think "The Heat" surpassed most of the albums made by his influences, which is only my opinion based on my connection with the albums that he has created, but some people like to make musical claims as though they are a fact, b/c some jerk-off critics wrote it in a pop-culture magazine, and by the way, to the reviewer who knows it all, you failed to list Westerberg as an influence, which is odd, because I've thought that Jesse Malin's music sounded like a chip off the old Paul Westerberg block, which is very nice. Man, Westerberg and Malin, that would be a great album.
  
  

• A Poet's Heart

  
  By A1IWWRZJOXOSYP on 2007-04-07
  Jesse Malin's "Glitter in the Gutter" is his 3rd solo disc after 3 CDs with D Generation. This is his best disc yet, which is saying A LOT considering that "The Fine Art of Self Destruction" was a classic. It is consistently good from beginning to end. Malin's opener "Don't Let Them Take You Down" has a somber lyric, "A new generation & the whole world's shakin'; We were born in flames." He then fills the track with driving guitars and aching vocals. "In the Modern World" has the catchy chorus and Ryan Adams' guitar pumping, "By the radio with the afterglow; Mama told you now or never." Malin sang "Hungry Heart" on the Bruce Springsteen tribute set "Light of Day." The Boss returns the favor with a guest vocal on a slower song, "Broken Radio," with an arrangement that builds anthem-like, "The angels love you more than you know... I was thinking about the universe." He follows with a rock blaster, "Prisoners of Paradise," "In this vampire nation, it begins like it ends; She looked good on paper, at least I've got my friends." "Black Haired Girl" nods to the past & sounds like Van Morrison's "Brown Eyed Girl" with Malin's vocals doing a Van deja vu including references to "Mountain High, River Deep" (a twist on Tina) & "American Pie." Malin's relationship with Lucinda Williams is pushed into the spotlight with "Lucinda." She has returned the favor on her excellent new "West" CD. Malin covers a track from the Replacements' 1985 "Tim" in a stripped acoustic version. He follows it with an update of "Since You're in Love." "New York Nights" has a "Hungry Heart" feel in the chorus, "From the desert to this love stained town, I still find comfort in the underground." Ryan Adams does background vocals on the closer "Aftermath" with the pointed lyric, "She never got famous; She was the star of my life 'til we drifted like runoff or two ships in the night." Professional reviewer Thom Jurek described Malin as a "street rocker with a poet's heart," which is an apt description. "Glitter in the Gutter" brings all of Malin's strengths to the table: the vocals that are part vulnerability and part swagger, the strong guitar attack punctuated by acoustic moments. This is his best disc yet. Bravo!
  
  

• one of my favorite contemporary rockers.

  
  By A370T7ZOJJ76I2 on 2007-03-23
  i loved jesse malin's first two albums, "the fine art of self destruction," and "the heat." very glad to have another one. "glitter in the gutter," is a tremendous set of songs, somewhat similar in theme to early springsteen; so it's appropriate that bruce makes an appearance here himself. malin and springsteen perform a superb vocal duet on "broken radio," a wonderfully poetic lyric that few current songwriters could match. malin's songwriting is uniformly strong across all three albums, in fact. he is one of the few lyricists at work today who harken back to a time when words could actually tell a story about someone in a song. his vocal style is original and pleasing, expressive without ever becoming overblown. a great recording. i recommend it wholeheartedly to all fans of soulful rock and roll.
  
  

• Not his best, but.... still quite good

  
  By A1EUFL119M4UU8 on 2007-03-28
  I can't conciously give this album a five star review, simply because of Malin's two previous solo albums. This album has some definite highlights, but also has some tracks that leave me scratching my head. The high points of this album are "Don't Let Them Take You Down," which is in the classic Malin vein and would fit in on either of his first two albums, "Aftermath," which works well with Malin's 'gutter rat' persona, and has a nice melody and solid lyrics. The best track is easily "Broken Radio," his duet with Springsteen. It's an enchanting song by itself, and Springsteen adds his beautifully, weathered voice to fit perfectly in with Malin's high pitched vocals. Hell, it's worth just to hear Springsteen sing the line "We never had a lot of cash, but we loved those kids" (a classic Springteenian line if there ever was one!). There are so other good tracks such as "Lucinda," and "Black Haired Girl" (with Jakob Dylan). The thing that sets this album back a little bit is that his first two albums were so good, that it kind of pales in comparison. Heat was a great album, and The Fine Art of Self-Destruction was a freaking masterpiece. Glitter in the Gutter has some tracks that are on par with those two, but has too many weak spots. To a casual fan, what was the point of "Since You're in Love 2007" or whatever the song is called now. The version on Heat was superior, although it wasn't even the best song on that album ("Scars of Love," in my opinion, takes that award). The lyrics on some of his up tempo numbers here are a little bit weaker than before, as if he was trying a little to hard to for commercial aspirations, and their arrangements leave me a little cold. The Replacements cover also kind of leaves you scratching your head, although Malin's performance is not bad, itself. It just makes you wonder the point of that one, other than for cred. My last knock on it is the production. Ryan Adams produced his first album, while Malin himself produced Heat, and those albums had a sweeping sound that seems to be left behind in favor of a leaner, more commercial sound. I have no problem with commercial aspirations, but the production on this one took it a little to far, therefore robbing it of some of its raw energy that was so evident on his earlier albums.
  
  Overall, while this album doesn't reach the peaks of his earlier works. This is good, solid work from a performer that has all the talent in the world. This guy has so much talent that you expect everything to be earth shattering, and when it's not, it can be a little bit of a letdown. Born to Run's and Darkness on the Edge of Town's only come around once in a generation, but I was hoping Malin had one in him, and maybe he still does. But to those unfamiliar with what came before, you should be more than satisfied with this rocking album.
  
  
• Cry Baby Malin Kills Again!
  By A2SAYL13JMCEQT on 2007-03-23
  Jesse Malin is a New York City cry baby desperately trying to work up the courage to strap on a pair of balls and face life like a man. Malin has been playing a doe in the headlights since the 90's but he is not your typical skinny cry baby predictable boring punk. He's not your everyday tear in my beer worm crying about spilt milk. He's an intelligent and progressive song writer with something interesting to say. Jesse Malin is not in the same league as his not so punk rock influences Leonard Cohen, Tom Waites, Jimmy Buffet and Bruce Springsteen but "Glitter in the Gutter "is intersting and worth a listen.
  
  
• All that glitters...
  By A1C20CN2A2UP99 on 2007-04-08
  Following his impressive debut The Fine Art Of Self Destruction with 2004's gritty, impassioned The Heat, rock'n'roll outlaw Jesse Malin looked set for the sort of acclaim and stardom usually set aside for his pal Ryan Adams. Pre-release whispers on Malin's 2007 album hinted that it just might be his great artistic leap forward - the one to take him over the top. On arrival, Glitter In The Gutter has in fact revealed itself to be a step sideways for the singer-songwriter. It's a solid enough (if uneven) collection of songs that doesn't quite hit the songwriting highs of The Heat, but also has enough standout cuts to commend it.
  
  Spirited opener `Don't Let Them Take You Down' is classic Jesse Malin - invigorating rock music delivered with a street poet's flair. The catchy and carefree `Don't Care About Tomorrow' with it's sunny, infectious AM radio chorus, is even better, and sounds ready-built for good radio stations everywhere. `Tomorrow Tonight' and `Love Streams' are two more good quality rockers, and both would be worthy singles. The obvious highlight here though is `Broken Radio', a stirring ballad on which Malin duets with Bruce Springsteen - a man who is not only very much an influence, but also, more latterly, a fan of Malin's. With the added genius of Ryan Adams on guitar, it's a tune that really couldn't fail.
  
  At times though, Glitter In The Gutter veers toward more forgettable territory. `In The Modern World' strives to sound contemporary and edgy but ultimately feels somewhat generic, as does `Black Haired Girl' with it's cringe-worthy lyrics about "going for a ride... just like Bonnie & Clyde". Malin can do better than this. As if to remind us of that, on Glitter he's included an updated version of one of his best compositions. `Happy Ever After (Since You're In Love)' is essentially the same song as `Since You're In Love' from The Heat, but with Malin tacking the words "I hope you're happy ever after " onto the end of the title line in the chorus. Ultimately, it's difficult not to feel that it's all a bit pointless. Happily, all is not lost. After the disappointment of a patchy second half, Glitter In The Gutter finishes on a welcome high note with the poignant and assured songcraft of `Aftermath'.
  
  Glitter In The Gutter is not a bad third effort by any means, just a little too heavy on the perspiration and a bit too light on the inspiration.
  
  
• Glitter in the Gutter Jesse Main
  By A26YX7F7V8TH2Y on 2007-04-11
  Fantastic dont stop playing this CD, a young Bruce Springsteen
  
  
• Glitter in the Gutter
  By A2DJV54PT23OTS on 2007-05-11
  This is an incredible CD from an artist so talanted that it's hard to beleive why he flying under the radar screen. Raw energy, passioante lyrics, and well produced, solid sound with guest appearances from Bruce Springsteen and Jacob Dylan. Jessee has now produced 3 CD's and each one gets better and better. Hopefully, this is his break through disk.
  
  
• Unique Collaboration
  By A4XO5MOQBY8WH on 2007-05-12
  Jesse is a unique musicaian and sings like it hurts. He has great collaborations with The Boss about the Motor City. Overall the album is well thoughout and assembled and the music is allowed to be itself
  
  

• Easy Tiger
• The Fine Art of Self Destruction
• Magic
• West
• Sky Blue Sky