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RED LETTER DAYS
The Wallflowers
(Interscope/Universal)
Everything comes full circle.
For the past couple of decades, guys like Tom Petty have been imitating Bob Dylan. Now, on his fourth CD, Wallflowers leader Jakob Dylan -- the son of the big man himself -- has turned into ... a Tom Petty impersonator. And not an exceptional one at that.
Presumably as a reaction to the commercial failure of his last album, 2000's gritty and ambitious Breach, Jake has retreated to the sort of jangly, hook-filled pop sound that spawned earlier hits like One Headlight. Thing is, his heart doesn't really seem to be in it. The bulk of Red Letter Day's 12 tracks are unimpressive, easily forgettable pop-rock ditties that could be about either a romantic breakup or post-9/11 America, depending on how you read them.
Either way, Dylan sums things up when he says, "Maybe it's not that I don't care anymore / Maybe I just never did."
Ultimately, neither do we, reducing Red Letters Days to something less than the event it could have been. (More on The Wallflowers)
Track Listing
1. When You're On Top
2. How Good It Can Get
3. Closer To You
4. Everybody Out Of The Water
5. Three Ways
6. Too Late To Quit
7. If You Never Got Sick
8. Health And Happiness
9. See You When I Get There
10. Feels Like Summer Again
11. Everything I Need
12. Here In Pleasantville
13. (What's So Funny 'bout) Peace, Love & Understanding (Bonus Track)
14. Empire Of My Mind (Bonus Track)