katmar's Full Review: The Indescribable Wow by Sam Phillips (Singer)
When I first heard The Indescribable Wow, I thought the songs were all classics, redone by Sam Phillips. Well, classics they are, but they were all written by Sam.
And I may be going out on what you think is a huge limb here, but I'm going to say it anyway: this may be one of the best pop albums ever recorded.
And by pop I don't mean Sheryl Crow, Matchbox Twenty, or anyone in the Top 40. I'm talking Hall of Fame big-leaguers: The Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Dylan, The Beach Boys, The Supremes... take them and mix them with something totally unique and you may be close - may be -- to describing Sam's musical gifts. The girl writes hooks that will make you bleed.
The CD
The title of the CD is appropriate, and should be taken literally, though I think she was referring to love, and not serving as her own PR person. :)
I Don't Want To Fall In Love pulls you in immediately with a subtle, slightly jaunty rhythm, and then Sam's seductive vocals.
We're not lovers, you and I I can't think of reasons why I should want you like that -- I'm stranded by my passion The whole idea fits us like a suit gone out of fashion
Then this wonderful rat-a-tat-tat of drums that leads into the second verse of this truly delectable song about her fear of falling in love "with the idea of love" instead of love itself.
I Don't Know How To Say Goodbye To You is a perfect follow-up, restating her fears of the first song, and yet realizing she can't walk away. Her vocals and the melody here are vital, vibrant, and fully soaked with the innocence of a child in a grown woman.
Would you be scared... if I just stared And let you look inside me Or should I smile... and walk away So my eyes won't betray me? I don't know how to say goodbye to you
So vulnerable, and yet so ballsy. Love that combo. :)
Flame is nearly rapturous in its beauty and fragility. Intimate, lush, seductive, it's another view of love, and the questioning we all do about whether to give in to the heat of that flame.
Flame... why do I stand so close to you? Vain... telling me what I shouldn't do I saw you smoldering before I let him pull me to the floor Oh oh... flame
This song melts all over you.
Remorse... talk about shifting gears -- this song's about an abusive mother. But it does keep your toes tapping, oddly enough.
Pulling the trigger, a shot would fire then he'd wake To the red lips above him, smeared with scorn and stale restraint She covered him with pity like a snake about to strike Then pronounce him hopeless when he wouldn't Do as she would like
Very eerily intriguing song. Try and figure out what really happens and tell me your theories.
What Do I Do... I would play "Flame" for my friends, and they would love it. Then I'd play this one, and they'd go, "oh my God." This song is on the same playing field as "Flame," but somehow it's even more beautiful.
The song opens with the sound of strings playing incredibly softly then slowly building to normal volume, and the strings surround Sam, but they never overwhelm her.
The vocals are layered behind her, and then the layers turn into Sam almost doing "rounds" with herself, repeating the last line, over top of the lead line. It's plush, gorgeous, and unexpectedly moving.
What do I do when I want to... Be as close as I can be to you? I feel like a cruel girl, saying both yes and no I want you to want me... I need to trust you, though
And my favorite line: If I set you on fire... will you keep me warm? What an amazing plea for assurance that this isn't just lust, that he'll be there afterwards. God, I think that's beautiful.
I Can't Stop Crying was a song I thought was about the church, before I read the lyrics. Sam was maimed by fundamentalists, but this song isn't about them. This is about love, and about fear becoming reality.
I saw black and you saw red Crawled to separate corners, the line went dead I closed my heart up, tore your love for me to shreds Tangled wires, love can't breathe Pulling tighter to my ruthless need Oh don't look down, I want you unconsolably
Great pain and a great hook, and an ache in her vocals that sound like the truth.
Holding On To The Earth sounds like something the Doors would have done, and they've stolen the keyboards right out of their songbook, according to producer T-Bone Burnett!
This song seems to be about trying not to lose your mind when you've "made it". Sam says it's about the "yuppie in her," but there's a lot of abstract stuff at the end that will leave you thinking for days.
I've got a long black Cadillac Marble hot tub in the back Champagne waterfall... Solid gold question mark twenty feet tall Solid gold question mark twenty feet tall
She Can't Tell Time is quite cryptic, and I'm sure that's how it's intended. There are references to faith, the loss of it, and being judged for it, as she was, and a bittersweet, melancholy melody.
She can't tell time... she didn't get what she deserved When faith went blind... she found the truth but lost her nerve When she won't act her age, the cat circles 'round the cage Youth shrinks to tired rage....
Now there's a solid gold question mark. What does all of that mean? There are clues, but no body, just a chilling song left to go through.
What You Don't Want To Hear is that "how do I break up with him" song, and this one's got a fast pulse, and tempo close to breathless in the chorus where Sam rocks out.
I can't hide the truth from you In a closet of some kind Time will sharpen its blade... And it will cut you when you find it I wish that I could lie to you, baby But I've got what you don't want to hear
Well, I think you play this song for him and leave. But I like that she's concerned about his feelings. Nice woman.
Out Of Time is another break-up song, but this one has a bit of a calypso feel, and Sam doesn't sound all that sad about this one ending.
Tonight I'll leave you there where I found you Starting up the hill -- an echo standing still Our shadows cry for us, as the dust moves Time won't tell us why we let love go by Did we say forever, and whatever did we mean? Now my friend we're out of time
And with that the CD ends much too quickly for me.
Overall
Exceptional:
I Don't Want To Fall In Love (Sam Phillips) I Don't Know How To Say Goodbye To You (Sam Phillips) Flame (Sam Phillips) What Do I Do (Sam Phillips) I Can't Stop Crying (Sam Phillips) She Can't Tell Time (Sam Phillips/T-Bone Burnett) What You Don't Want To Hear (Sam Phillips)
Excellent:
Remorse (Sam Phillips) Holding On To The Earth (Sam Phillips/T-Bone Burnett) Out Of Time (Sam Phillips)
Final Thoughts
The Indescribable Wow is a masterpiece, and I don't say that often. In fact, I may have never said it. (I did say Charlie Sexton recorded his masterpiece, but that's very different.)
This CD marked the beginning of Sam Phillips' foray into the "secular" world of pop. It announced a bright new star. It turned the heads of critics. It put her on everyone's year-end "best" list. It had people voting for her as Songwriter Of The Year.
But in the small world of music, where a "label" is just about everything, they couldn't label Sam. And Sam didn't care. She never promoted herself on television, or with videos, she just toured enough to build a cult following.
Sam Phillips never wanted stardom. She says she knows people who went on to be rock stars, and it didn't seem "that interesting".
What does Sam want? To be a better writer and a better artist. Which is probably going to be hard since she started out this high.
This CD is twenty-one years old. It sounds like it was recorded yesterday. Which is as it should be. The Indescribable Wow is what all great works of art are --priceless and timeless. And it should be in your collection if it's not there already.
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