Shelby Lynne's "Killin' Kind" kicks off this soundtrack with a baroque complexity that keeps the pleasures comin': quirky phrasing, two middle sections
(one of which is nine measures of crunchy power pop), strings,
wah-wah, ad-lib belting that'll suck the breath out of you. Plus it
gets to its killin' khorus nine seconds quicker than The Raspberries'
"Go All the Way" does. Country? Adult Contemporary? Alternative?
Singer/songwriter? It's all these and none, a delightful sludge that
could only be pure pop, whatever the song's actual chart action
proves to be. It's such a great song that, unsurprisingly, it
eclipses everything else here, confirming that Sheryl Crow ("Kiss
That Girl") still needs a heapin' helpin' of some pomo detachment,
that Robbie Williams' ("Have You Met Miss Jones?") wit in interviews
has yet to travel to his music, and that Tracy Bonham ("Just
Perfect") and Gabrielle ("Out of Reach") will probably never rise
above their celebrated competence. In short, this is a classic single
with a whole lot of b-sides. Since Island obviously isn't pricing it
as a single like they should, spring for the entire disc only if you
don't already own Chaka Khan's "I'm Every Woman" and/or you crave a
terrible rendition of "It's Raining Men" by Spice Girl Geri
Halliwell.
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