LAURIE ANDERSON

SOUNDTRACK TO THE FILM 'HOME OF THE BRAVE'

  1/  Smoke Rings                                (Anderson)                    7.00
  2/  White Lily                                 (Anderson)                    1.16
  3/  Late Show                                  (Anderson)                    4.30
  4/  Talk Normal                                (Anderson)                    5.27
  5/  Language Is A Virus                        (Anderson)                    4.10
  6/  Radar                                      (Anderson)                    2.01
  7/  Sharkey's Night                            (Anderson)                    6.16
  8/  Credit Racket                              (Anderson)                    3.28
 
          Recorded at Park Theater, Union City, NJ, Blue Rock Studio, Skyline Studio
          Engineered by Leanne Ungar
          Post-Production Audio by Bill Marino and Ken Hahn at Sync Sound
          Record remixed at Soundworks
          Assistants at Soundworks: Phil Burnett and P. Dennis Mitchell
          Production Assistant at Soundworks: Laura Fried
          Track 5 recorded and mixed by James Farber
          Track 5 second engineer: Knut Bohn
          Production Managers on track 5: Budd Tunick and Kevin Jones
          Basic tracks for track 1 produced by Nile Rodgers
          Original version of track 7 produced by Bill Laswell and Laurie Anderson
          Produced by Roma Baran and Laurie Anderson
          Track 5 produced by Nile Rodgers
          Mastered by Bob Ludwig at Masterdisk
Laurie Anderson: vocals (1,2,4,5,6,7), keyboards (1,3), Synclavier violin (1), Synclavier (2,3,4,5,6,7,8), violin (3), crowd (5); Dolette McDonald & Janice Pendarvis: vocals (1,4,7); Rob Sabino (1): keyboards, morse code; Joy Askew : keyboards (1,7,8), Moog (4), Prophet (4), DX-7 (4), vocals (4); Nile Rodgers: guitar (1,5), keyboards (5), Synclavier (5), crowd (5); Jimmy Bralower: drums (1,4,5); Adrian Belew: guitar (3,4,7,8); Richard Landry: saxophone (3,4,7), clarinet (4); William S. Burroughs: vocal sample (3); David Van Tieghem: percussion (4,8), drums (7); Robert Arron: sax (5); Tom Durack & Knut Bohn: crowd (5); Curtis King, Frank Simms, Diane Garisto, Tawatha Agee & Brenda White-King: back-up vocals (5); Daniel Ponce & Isidro Bobadillo: percussion (7); Bill Laswell: bass animals (8); Kevin Jones (5): Synclavier programming.

          1986 - Warner Bros. (USA), 925 400-1 (Vinyl)
          1986 - Warner Bros. (USA), 925 400-2 (CD)

REVIEWS :

Working as a soundtrack to the concert film of the same name, "Home of the Brave" is the culmination of the "United States" box set and her two previous releases, "Big Science" (which was in itself an extension of "United States") and "Mr. Heartbreak". Though most of the music is new, the recurring theme of America Through the Looking Class has begun to grow tiresome, and with the definite exception of two absolutely astounding songs, the intellectual and creative spark seems to have been snuffed out. For "Home of the Brave", Anderson has retained most of the stellar musicians from her previous recording and, much like "Mr. Heartbreak", these individuals are faithful to both the artist and her vision. However, the droning "Late Show", the ludicrous "Talk Normal", the instantly irritating "Radar" and the vastly inferior version of "Sharkey's Night" all seem to waste the exceptionally talented players involved. This CD would be if not forgettable, unbearable, were it not for two absolutely stunning songs that showcase all of Anderson's strengths as a musican and songwriter. The first and lead track, "Smoke Rings", reads like a stream-of-consciousness term paper concerning levels of lust and obsession; the song's structure is comprised of several unrelated verses held together by a repeated chorus and in its entirety, blends world music, synth and do-wop into a wonderfully diverse whole. Track Five, "Language Is A Virus", takes its title from a piece by William S. Burroughs, entitled "Language is a Virus from Outer Space". Though its structure is similar to "Smoke Rings", it is undeniably catchy and smart in ways most music isn't nowadays. "Home of the Brave" is not an essential work by Anderson (for that, refer to her later release, "Strange Angels"), and yet it does have its moments. Personal Favorites: The only two songs worth buying this CD are "Smoke Rings" and "Language Is A Virus". Representative Lyrics: "Paradise/ Is exactly like/ Where you are right now/ Only much much better" ("Language Is A Virus"); "Ah desire!/ First it's red and then it's blue/ And every time I see an iceberg/ It reminds me of you" ("Smoke Rings")

southwestreview from El Paso, TX, April 14, 2000

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Laurie Anderson's "Home of the Brave" is more experimental and less overtly musical than the more well-known, "Strange Angels" album. The artist blends her performance art presentation skills with a wildly experimental musical score to produce a unique landscape of sounds and lyrical images which some listeners will find challenging. However, if you are willing to let yourself go and enjoy it, you will find yourself well rewarded for your faith. There are plenty of funky, singable hooks in "Home of the Brave", such as the infectious chorus of "Language is a virus". However, this album is also chock full of unusual sounds and experimental instruments which may lead the timid, pop-oriented audience to squeal, "This is music?!" More adventerous spirits will gleefully respond in the afirmative. Laurie dons a suit of triggers and plays an electronic drum set by dancing and pounding on parts of her body. Guitarist Adrian Belew plays his guitar with various household items, and at one point creates a sound somewhat like an elephant's roar. The most unusual effect on the album is created using an electronic violin and bows strung with taped sound samples. Love it or hate it, the resulting sound is indescribable, and unforgetable. Few artists are capable of this level of experimentation, and even fewer are this successful. This album, as experimental as it is, is perhaps most impressive in it's consistency. Laurie Anderson fans will be hard-pressed to find a "dud" in the bunch. Considering the high-wire act that this album represents, that is no mean feat.

brucewh@pacbell.net (courtesy of the Amazon.com website)