TOM RAPP: A JOURNAL OF THE PLAGUE YEAR

As Tom Rapp more or less retired from the music scene during the second half of the 70's to become a Civil Rights lawyer, he became more or less forgotten for the mainstream. So I guess it must've been a solid surprise for those who remembered fondly the early albums of Pearls Before Swine to hear from Tom Rapp returning with an album after the millennium., even though he chose his name rather than his old group's name. A good decision given that this is more of a solo effort than a group one. I'm not sure why the man chose to come back to music, whether pushed by the nostalgia or envy of music, but I believe I'm not the only one to find his return very disappointing.

Behind this very conceptual album title and artwork, one could expect a series of songs that are at least related in lyrics and contents. I personally detected nothing of the sort (not even a title track), and to be honest, the very diminutive package is hardly any help, not even giving the line-up playing on the album. And the proghead won't find much more interest in the songs selected on the disc. The album opens on an old timer (and incredibly boring) a capela track (Silver Apples) that chills the enthusiasm? Following tracks don't really fare much better, but at least there are instruments, but nothing of much interest, except for the odd orchestral arrangements. BTW, while the album is more folk than country, the usual Dylan influences are not always as immediately obvious as in his mid-70's albums, but they're still around.

Would you believe that the more interesting track is the closing live monologue, worthy of the best stand-up comedians, where Tom Rapp reminisces on the 60's drug and recording days. Indeed, in front of a very accepting public, he tells us of a few hilarious anecdotes about the ESP/Elektra studio days that sound like personal experiences, not second-hand. While really funny (the man is a gifted raconteur), it's simply not enough to warrant investing in this kind of album.