Rodd Keith
Keith is hailed by fans as king of the song-poem. This title may not mean much to the average listener, but among seekers of strange music, it's quite a badge of honor. Active during the 1960s and '70s, the deep-voiced crooner's job was to set the lyrics of aspiring songwriters to music after they'd been suckered in by misleading, small-print magazine ads that promised to make them stars. The process was a recipe for disaster: awkward, misguided lyrics were subjected to semi-generic, assembly-line musical arrangements in then "sounds of today" such as Nashville Sound country, Disco and MOR pop. The results were often recorded in hurried, one-take performances. It's a wonder that Keith, a gifted musician who felt he was selling himself short in this line of work, was able to keep a straight face on songs like "Hump Dance" or "Do You Know the Difference Between Big Wood and Brush." Collectors have rounded up some of the more remarkable song-poems from the original, extremely limited vinyl pressings. The long-deceased Keith surfaces frequently in compilations and even has a full disc of his own work, I Died Today. Not every second is golden, but the highlights, which are alternately head-shakingly "wrong," laugh-out-loud funny and even oddly touching, must be heard to be believed.
Will York
Renseignements sur Rodd Keith
Artiste
Rodd Keith
Prénom :
Rodd
Nom :
Keith
