Lunch, Recess & Detention

Marcy Playground

Capitol, 2012

http://www.marcyplayground.net

REVIEW BY: Jason Warburg

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: 01/26/2013

It’s always seemed like a given to me that rarities albums from established bands are strictly for the hardcore fans. I mean, who else but a longtime fan is going to get anything out of a hodgepodge of unreleased tunes, b-sides, re-recordings and remixes. Right?

Wrong.

To wit: I paid virtually no attention to Marcy Playground before this disc showed up in my in-box last year, but now… now, they have my respect. Yeah, sure the dueling versions of their one big hit, 1997’s “Sex And Candy,” feel a bit obvious, but what caught my ear was their superb cover of “Whiter Shade Of Pale.” It’s an iconic song and a gutsy choice for any band, and singer-songwriter-guitarist-producer John Wozniak absolutely nails it, stripping the song down to just that immortal organ line and his voice. That cover alone convinced me to listen to the entire album, and while it’s an unusual collection, I both enjoyed and can recommend the ride I took with my_heart_sings_the_harmony_web_ad_alt_250 Lunch, Recess & Detention.

The tricky part is that these are the songs that didn’t fit, whether because they were too different from the rest of the album they were recorded for not to disrupt its flow, or because they were one-offs of one sort or another in the first place. As a result, almost every song is a curveball of some kind. Yes, there’s some more-or-less standard Marcy alt-rock laid down as a base coat (“Black Eyed Sue,” “Bang Bang Bang,” “Bye Bye” and “Shapeshifter,” the title track from their sophomore album that was the last song to be cut from it). But beyond that, you’re bouncing all over the map: there’s Americana (the Band-like alternate take of “Brand New Day”), edgy underground (“Comin’ Up From Behind”), a sunny steel-drums-in-the-tropics number (“Mr. Fisher”), a sort of garage rock / Yellow Submarine crossover (“Crazy Katie Nicotine And Her Red Jet Air Ballon”), and a song about, well, life as a plant (“The Plant Song”). Say what?

Besides “Whiter Shade” and the very Beatlesque “Rosey Risin’,” maybe the most distinctive song here was the giddy rockabilly-Cajun raver “Up And Down,” a major and very successful departure. “Special” is worth mentioning as well, an enjoyable midnight ride if you’re into that whole “doomed lovers” vibe.

The other covers are earnestly and faithfully executed, but didn’t do much for me. With all due respect to Mr. Wozniak and partner-in-crime/bassist Dylan Keefe, anyone who thinks they have a real shot at matching, let along topping, Jeff Buckley’s cover of “Hallelujah” is delusional. Is it a respectful and respectable version? Absolutely, but the only real takeaway for me as a listener was that MP had more guts than wisdom. I had a similar but less visceral reaction to their cover of Neil Young’s “The Needle And The Damage Done”: thanks for playing, glad you had a good time. Next?

Bottom line: when I hit play, Marcy Playground meant nothing to me, and now I kinda like ’em.  This collection isn’t going to change any lives, but it’s a surprisingly enjoyable cornucopia of styles and odds and ends from a clearly talented band. Nice meeting you, guys.

Rating: B

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