Track Listing
1. Greatest
2. Living Proof
3. Lived In Bars
4. Could We
5. Empty Shell
6. Willie
7. Where Is My Love
8. Moon
9. Islands
10. After It All
11. Hate
12. Love And Communication
| Details | | Number of CDs: | 1 | | Recording Type: | Studio | | Distributor: | PIAS UK/Sony DADC |
Album Notes
Chan Marshall's gorgeous, evocative albums as Cat Power have gained even more critical and popular attention than her idiosyncratic on-stage behavior (and that's saying quite a bit). MOON PIX (1998) and YOU ARE FREE (2004), the two albums of all-original material preceding 2006's THE GREATEST, were spellbinding affairs that pitted Marshall's haunting voice against a stirring melange of spare, low-key indie rock and atmospheric balladry. THE GREATEST, however, one of Marshall's most focused and impressive efforts, surpasses those two superb albums.The album is characterized by elaborate horn and string arrangements and a warm, polished feel, much of which stems from the old-school Memphis soul musicians Marshall has backing her (guitarist Teenie Hodges and bassist Leroy Hodges, both of Al Green fame, appear, as does MGs replacement drummer Steve Potts, among others). The sweet, earthy sheen may lack some of the raggedness that pleased Marshall's indie fans, yet the artist has lost none of her incisive songwriting ability, whether on moving narratives (the title track), countrified lopes ("Could We"), or spare meditations on loneliness ("Where is My Love"). More immediately accessible that previous Cat Power releases, THE GREATEST is no less distinctive or engaging: it sounds less like selling out than buying in.
Editorial Reviews
3.5 stars out of 5 -- [U]nsettling but intimate....[A]n album full of bittersweet love and tiny pleasures.Entertainment Weekly (p.p.80) - Marshall recorded the album in Memphis with songwriters and musicians who've worked with the likes of Al Green....She's inching her way toward expressiveness... - Grade: B+Mojo (p.116) - 4 stars out of 5 -- For all their intimacy, there is still something otherworldly about these songs....By putting some warm flesh on her musical bones, Chan Marshall is punching her considerable songwriting weight....THE GREATEST lives up to its gold-plated name.Uncut (p.74) - 4 stars out of 5 -- [T]his is the real thing: a shy, emotionally naked white girl finding common cause with her region's neglected musical greats, delivering an album of perilous depth....An understated masterpiece.Magnet (pp.88-89) - [Marshall] brings sound and sentiment together on 'The Moon,' an understated evocation of loneliness.
Rolling Stone
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