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The first John was a sensitive (some would say delicate!) young man who read a lot because going out and having fun like a normal teenager was much too challenging. He listened a lot to music, too, and sometimes the twain would meet, and the reading would be about the music.
Armed with the Rolling Stone Record Review Volume II he discovered the "new Dylans" - the guys who, in the absence of Dylan himself, might fill the void. Loudon Wainwright (who wrote a funny song about it), Springsteen, James Taylor (I know, right?), and many, many others. Does Joni Mitchell count? She should. Randy Newman? Yeah. (He was pretty creepy back then, though.)
One of them was also named John.
So John One was intrigued enough by the positive review of John Two's Album One that he tried it out. (And people wonder why he actually read critics!)
I - III:
John Prine: John Prine (1971)
The archetypal "every song is good" album. Very country in its approach, tuneful, and great lyrics. Prine reminds me of Neil Young in his genius at coming up with simple, profound songs using as little as three chords. The singing is a little tentative this time out, but the accompaniment is damn near perfect. This is the very definition of a classic album.
A
Well named, here Prine goes for the gut with much less accompaniment. It's basically a folk record. The vocals are more forceful, and, well, rough. But it works great. It's not quite up to the songwriting consistency of the first but the best ones ("Souvenirs", "The Great Compromise") are as good as the best ones on the first album. It's also slightly funnier, but of course in mordant way. Uncompromising, and not for everyone but I love it.
A-
John Prine: Sweet Revenge (1973)
A rocking surprise. John loosens up, gets a full country-rock band and sharp lead guitar from Reggie Young and Steve Burgh. It comes as a relief after Diamonds, is an absolute delight and the funniest one yet. The classic song here is "Christmas in Prison", which I play every year.
A
The first John stops here because there are other new Dylans to explore. He has a limited amount of money to spend and feels deep down that as good as these three records are, the basic approach is still pretty simple and he may have reached the point of diminishing returns. I mean, how many more great John Prine songs could there be?
But all three of these easily make John One's Best of the 70s list.
IV - VI:
A few years later John One meets a girl he's interested in, and the introductory conversation almost immediately turns to - what else? - music.
They start trading names, checking for common ground. Then she says "John Prine?" He says hell yes and that seals the deal. For a while.
Later, when he thought of her, he'd also think of Prine's song "Yes, I Guess They Ought to Name a Drink After You", but during her tenure, he'd hear albums four through six.
Common Sense:
Tenser than any of the first three, and not always in a good way. So Not Fun, but worth the effort. Which is more than he could say for her.
B+
Bruised Orange:
Although the world (or at least Rolling Stone) called it his best, he and she agreed that this was not as good as the prior ones. She insisted it "just wasn't him". And Prine agreed. It was producer-and-almost-not-a-friend-anymore Steve Goodman's version of him.
B+
Pink Caddilac:
A strange one. Very rocking in a late 50s kind of way. Entertaining while on, but not one you'd go back to. (John Prine just doesn't make bad records.)
B
We even got to see him around this time at Lincoln Center, where he played a solo show but with an electric guitar. And he pulled it off, too.
VII - XIV:
And after that relationship ended the two Johns parted ways for a while, too. A long while. Was it guilt by association? John One kept specializing in miserableness. John Two kept making music.
XV:
So it was only a few years ago, after the exhortations of his siblings, that John One finally went back.
John One was initially disappointed that there's only one Prine original here. It also wasn't promising to know it was a series of country duets. First, Prine's voice is expressive but won't win any Prettiness awards. But damn, if after the second listen, John One didn't realize these were great country songs, and that the female singers provided all the prettiness needed. it had almost no original songs but it proceeded to wear me down and win me over.
A
XVI -XX:
By now, John One's limited time and attention span were redirected to new territory. John Two keeps tending to the old. It's called commitment.
XXI:
John One hasn't heard the last one yet. He doesn't want it associated with these dark times, even though the cold facts would seem to dictate that. By all accounts, it's prime Prine. There will be a time for it, though.
∞:
And then I get word that he's sick from the Coronavirus.
And, of course, a couple of weeks later, he dies. What did I expect?
He just went on doing what he did whether I paid any attention or not, somehow finding a way to make it great while keeping it simple. In the process, I've no doubt he's left me a whole treasure trove of songs to discover when I'm ready. Dozens of great ones I have no doubt.
I guess for some, Prine's genre is largely represented by the original - and the new - Dylans, and what came after them. But he's the one I think of when I hear the term "Americana".
Hell, he's the one I think of when I hear the term "America".
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