My Amazon Reviews: Jill Sobule "California Years"

Out in California, 4 Out of 5 Stars

I was fortunate enough to catch Jill Sobule at Philadelphia's Tin Angel club, where she not only previewed some of these songs for us lucky attendees, but she also invited me (and a bunch of others) to sing "All The Young Dudes" with her. She also sold us download "USB keys" that offered the opportunity to own that night's show...so somewhere out there, you can hear my voice bellowing the verses to Mott The Hoople with Jill.

But that also meant that I've been listening to "San Francisco," "Nothing To Prove" and a few others prior to "California Years" arriving. So I am already predisposed to loving this CD, and Jill Sobule once again did not let me down. Fan-funded and self-released, "California Years' is primarily inspired by Jill's move out west and all the golden glow (and mirages) Southern Cal has to offer. There's the on/off fascination that opens the album on a visit to Palm Springs, where a hike into the beautiful desert hills is so hot that you turn back, or vibrancy of the pictures you've seen gives way to a resort filled with seniors. There's also the musical contradiction. Is Palm Springs, California the sunny fun-filled world of Brian Wilson or the tragic wanderlust of Graham Parsons?

Jill's previous CD, Underdog Victorious, played with the contradictions by hiding some sad subjects under glossy pop, but here the sadness gets the low cry of pedal steel. It's some pretty awesome stuff. Same for "San Francisco." Not that Jill has lost her sense of humor. Both the biting "Nothing To Prove" and "Spiderman" take broad pokes at the entertainment business. "Mexican Pharmacy" is a bit more of a realistic take on why Tijuana has such a great rep for inexpensive drugstores. And there's the shaggy-dog story of "Where is Bobbie Gentry," which takes a long over-due look at what happened on the Tallahatchie Bridge some 40 years later.

"California Years" is proof to me that, once again, Jill Sobule's best music making years are still in progress. Her "I Kissed A Girl" fling in the spotlight may be two decades past, but CD's like "California Years" give fans like us reason to keep coming back.