Beth Orton - Central Reservation
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CD Details
Artist: Beth OrtonEdition: Music CD
CD Release Date: 1999-03-09
Music Label: Arista
Soundtracks:
- Stolen Car
- Sweetest Decline
- Couldn't Cause Me Harm
- So Much More
- Pass In Time
- Central Reservation (Original Version)
- Stars All Seem To Weep
- Love Like Laughter
- Blood Red River
- Devil Song
- Feel To Believe
- Central Reservation (The Then Again Version)
Music reviews of Central Reservation
Music Review: Insert witty title here->
Rating: 5 Stars
I am a Beth Orton fan. Not fanatically devoted so I can't wax eloquently about her with anecdotes and such in this review. For me it's all about quality music and this album has plenty of it.
Of the various components that comprise our music listening experience, lyricism and melodic structure jumps to the fore in my personal selection criteria. Central Reservation manages to piece many of the right melodies along with lyrics that will resonate across a good breadth of listeners' own experiences. Orton's lyrics are simple, direct and not overly obtuse. Common enough language so as not to feel pretentious, yet effective in conveying the message intended.
Melodically, Beth is consistent with "her sound"; a good, eclectic mix of electronic infused folk, rock, and a little jazz thrown in. While her sound is typically a little "thin" to me, a couple of songs from this album had surprising depth and richness.
Content-wise, a few songs stand out to me and deserves mention on their own merits. Stolen Car had an edge that meshed well with the angst and uncertainty of an encounter with one's ex-lover. Sweetest Decline had a sound that perfectly encapsulates a sun drenched, lazy afternoon for me with its jazz infused sound and ruminations of the decay in our inexorable march towards our ends. Stars All Seem To Weep was a track I initially dismissed with it's synth beat opening but immediately punished my prejudice with it's haunting vocals and Beth's breathy delivery. Ended up as one of my favorite tracks on this album. Blood Red River conjured up vivid imagery with its lyrics coupled with a perfectly suited acoustic delivery that evokes a nearly visceral reaction. Pass In Time does not disappoint given it's very personal connection to Orton in the subject matter of her mother's passing. Ironically the title track Central Reservation, while a pleasing song in itself falls into the middle of the pack despite it's promising opening refrain.
The sense of cohesion with this album is remarkable. One of the few albums that can be popped in and listened to from beginning to end without me reaching for the remote to skip certain tracks. However, Love Like Laughter and Feel To Believe failed to impress in the least in that while pleasant, both felt like fluffed up filler.
To sum it all up, Central Reservation is a strong album from beginning to finish. Introspective and when Orton's willing, intimate in the sincerity of her emotions. Moving from haunting, melancholy depths to moments of hopeful honesty. The strengths of the great tracks on this album far outweighs the failings of the weaker offerings. I strongly recommend the purchase of this album.
Description of Central Reservation
Her second album stripping down to its raw essentials to produce a work of stark simplicity and rare poignancy.There's no way to offer a shortcut description of what Beth Orton sounds like. There are so many musical styles pulsing through Central Reservation--jazz, folk, pop, rock, and dance--that the album could easily have ended up an empty exercise in genre-hopping. Instead, it's a bracing example of mongrel music at its best as Orton carves out a new musical vocabulary with deep roots in familiar sounds. --Keith Moerer
Is Beth Orton the folkie Beck? Or is Beck an Orton with beats? Since both graze from genre to genre like goats feasting on whatever strikes their fancy, drawing parallels is tempting...and perhaps pointless. After all, both artists were born in 1970 and emerged at a time when musical categorization became an exercise in futility. English thrush Orton's third album--like her critically hailed debut and the Best Bit EP--prompts one to flash on an ever-swelling range of influences. Since she's blessed with the rich, warm voice of a true pop singer, it's easy to imagine her sharing space on some out-of-time radio playlist with Dusty Springfield (listen to the elegant, string-laden "Sweetest Decline"), except Orton's music draws on '90s trip-hop elements as well the jazzy folk of Tim Buckley and vet Terry Callier (reprising his Best Bit cameo). Orchestration, upright bass, vibes, and Orton's own resolute guitar give long, languid tracks such as "So Much More" and "Pass in Time" an Astral Weeks-like feel. All those touchstones and no fewer than six producers might imply that Central Reservation is something of a mishmash. In truth, Orton's overriding vision is all that's needed to create cohesion. --Steven Stolder
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