[rating=8.00]
True to her reputation as a singular interpreter, Bettye LaVette will turn heads again with Things Have Changed, putting her own spin on Bob Dylan’s songs much the way she did on her Interpretations: The British Rock Songbook. Despite achieving legendary status, this is the veteran soul singer’s first album release on a major label, Verve. Her first single “My Man – He’s a Loving Man” was released on Atlantic in 1962 when she was only 16 years old. But her string of albums in the past two decades, all interpretative material, have all earned high accolades. This one is sure to do the same. Some things don’t change.
If one were to walk into a room with this album on, they may not even immediately recognize some of these as Dylan tunes because her interpretations, tempos, phrasing, and accompaniment are so different. And, some of her choices are not the obvious ones. It’s a mix of Dylan’s well-known and seldom covered songs, spanning more than five decades from 1964’s iconic “The Times They Are Changin’” to “Aint Talkin,’” the final track on Dylan’s 2006 Modern Times.
LaVette was intent on taking Dylan’ material to a whole different place, especially considering the many artists who have covered his songs. She tapped producer and drummer Steve Jordan, who has worked with a staggering number of blues, pop, and rock artists. Many call Jordan an “encyclopedia of R&B.” Jordan, as you would expect, recruited top-shelf backing talent including Dylan’s long-time guitarist Larry Campbell, bass virtuoso Pino Palladino, and keyboardist Leon Pendarvis. The album was cut in a mere three days. Later guest spots were added for Keith Richard’s guitar on “Political World” and Trombone Shorty’s horns and Ivan Neville’s clavinet on “What Was It You Wanted.” Gil Goldstein adds keyboards on five tracks and The Fiery String Company appears on “Ain’t Talkin’.”
LaVette had this to say about exploring Dylan’s catalog, “Other people write songs, but he writes vignettes, more prose than poetry. I didn’t find his words to be pretty so much as they are extremely practical or extremely logical. He can work things like ‘go jump off a ledge’ into a song. Some of the songs, like “It Ain’t Me Babe” she hadn’t listened to before. She completely upends his fast tempo, choosing instead to give it a slower, Jimmy Reed like groove. For “The Times They Are a Changin’” they worked up the groove on a beat box. While many carry a slow, simmering R&B backdrop, “Do Right” is propelled by a Led Zeppelin “Whole Lotta Love” riff. A real standout here is “Emotionally Yours,” as LaVette wrings every nuance out of the lyrics. “Going, Going Gone” sounds even more defeatist than other interpretations (i.e. Gregg Allman’s), colored by Campbell’s weeping pedal steel.
The project was conceived by Bettye’s friend, Carol Friedman who offers this telling passage in the liners. “I felt sure that once Bettye got into bed with the songs, her initial reluctance would turn into a bold and abiding love. The crucial song selection would follow her customary process. Her barometer is instinctual and precise, the landscape must be fitting, the emotion credible, and the narrative compelling and wise. It is less about the songs themselves than the tableau that Bettye sets upon to sculpt. She’s got whispering to do.” As if you needed confirmation, once again this project proves that Bettye LaVette stands alone as a unique interpreter.
