r.stevie moore librarian << COMEBACK SPECIAL // NJ233 Feb.1998 C100/2CD Try CD1 (70:15) 01. Comeback Special (14:10) 8-26-97 02. Dennis (inst) (5:21) 9-1 03. Dennis (vcl) (5:19) 9-1 04. 101 Harrison Street (inst) (5:07) 9-3 05. 101 Harrison Street (vcl) (5:12) 9-3 06. Dynamite (35:04) 9-7, 10-12 Search CD2 (51:16) 01. Dans Of The Penny Whistles (2:35) 9-11 02. Dans Of The Sugar Plum Fairies (2:11) 9-11 (above 2 titles now available on e.p. at iTunes) 03. Pretty Vacant (3:16) 10-2 04. Leaving On A Jet Plane (3:40) 10-15 05. Rocky Mountain High (2:49) 10-15 06. City Of New York (4:47) 9-27 07. Bumpy Weather Over Newark (3:57) 9-27 08. Blue Blue Blue Blue Blue (3:40) 9-27 09. Isabell Had Died (:22) 10. Don't Talk (4:52) 11-30 11. WFMU Phone Ins (8:04) 12-10 12. 1998 List (6:32) 1-1-98 13. Tower Of Toilets (1:19) 2-2-98 14. It's A Girl (3:10) 11-20-97 Credits R this : ONE Only track 1 composed by RSM 2,3 by Pete Ham 4,5 by Wally Magee & Harry Palmer 6   by Holder/Holsapple/Rigby/Stamey TWO Only tracks 12-14 composed by RSM 1,2 by Pete Tchaikovsky        from The Nutcracker 3   by Cook/Jones/Matlock/Rotten 4,5 by John Denver (d. 12 Oct) 6-8 by Raymond Scott 10  by Brian Wilson Krys Olsiewicz=Vcl on A3, B10,11,13 Rogo Farflung=Vcl on B5 Coffee=B6 (Live/Bottom Line, NYC) Reckless Penguins=B7,8 (Live/Bottom Line, NYC) Ken Freedman, Andy Breckman, Frank Balesteri, Jim Price, Glen Jones=RadioVoices on B11 Like nostalgia, but not exactly. Sometimes I don't know what I'm talking about. ALSO SEE "DYNAMITE" E.P. AMG REVIEW: One of R. Stevie Moore's oddest releases of the '90s, 1998's Comeback Special is nonetheless peculiarly delightful. It opens with the hypnotic 14-minute title track, which features a Steve Reich-like staccato electronic keyboard pulse, over which Moore somehow manages to create a warm and yearning pop song. Following that epic comes a pair of obscure but wonderful covers, Badfinger's little-known album track "Dennis" (sung with feeling by Moore's wife Krystyna Olsiewicz) and "101 Harrison Street" by the all-but-unknown Boston psychedelic rockers Ford Theatre (a '60s group led by Moore's uncle and mentor, Harry Palmer), both of them appearing in both instrumental and vocal renditions for some reason. Disc 1 then closes with a mind-boggling 35-minute jam on the dBs' power pop classic "Dynamite" that starts with the familiar three-minute song, then spins off into a playful verbal riff where Moore builds on Chris Stamey and Peter Holsapple's unique vocal melody by reciting a nonsensical batch of random three-syllable words and phrases to the same deliciously whiny tune, which itself unwinds into a lengthy Klaus Schulze-style space-rock reverie. Disc 2 is less epic in scope, consisting of a handful of covers ranging from two settings of tunes from The Nutcracker Suite to a pair of tributes to the recently deceased John Denver. The highlight is a live trio of tunes by the late Raymond Scott performed by Moore and the Reckless Penguins, a tribute band organized by Scott archivist Irwin Chusid. Comeback Special probably is not recommended for neophytes, but it's one of R. Stevie Moore's most enjoyable late '90s recordings. –Stewart Mason, All Music Guide Download available at Bandcamp Also available on 2CDR $20 < SENIOR SUPERLATIVES                     MERMAID > HOME | NEWS | DISCOGRAPHY | ALBUMS | TAPOGRAPHY | LIVE | ARTICLES | LYRICS | AUDIO | STUDIO | VIDEO | YOUTH | FUTURE | FATHER | LINKS | SEARCH | FAMILY | CONTACT