GRAHAM PARKER > Imaginary Television

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Videos by American Songwriter

GRAHAM PARKER

Imaginary Television

(BLOODSHOT)

[Rating: 2 stars]

There are certain veteran rockers whose low-key approach suits their mid-life music. Unlike his former producer, Nick Lowe, Graham Parker isn’t one of them. This powerful singer/songwriter-one of the key strands in punk’s DNA- does his best work with a noisy band, one that goads Parker to bring the hooks and hair-raising vocals. Just listen to his classic, “Squeezing Out Sparks,” to see this illustrated vividly. Maybe it’s the low-budget or (Band keyboardist and Woodstock bud) Louie Hurwitz’s low-key production, but sharp tunes and his trademark urgency are sorely absent from Parker’s new, conceptual record about a fictional TV station.

Opener, “Weather Report” illustrates the problem vividly. It’s full of Parker’s familiar paranoid lyrics (“They have modified irises/Behind open lenses/They’re hiding equipment/Behind barbed wire fences”), but the subdued vocals and forgettable chorus don’t stick with you. “Bring Me A Heart Again,” is lyrical enough, but he’s not served well by its cheerful shuffle. Mostly, there’s a dreary uniformity to the record. Lots of strummed acoustic guitar, lots of tamped-down vocals. That was never the case when Parker worked with The Rumour. Might be time call Brinsley Schwarz and crank it up again.

11 Comments

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  1. Any idiot can write a review that concludes that a new album does not compare to Squeezing Out Sparks. But one would expect American Songwriter to do better since Graham Parker is possibly the preeminent American Songwriter of our time and SOS was done by a foreigner. There are 2 kinds of Americans…ones that are born here and ones that leave a foreign land to take their chances here. The first Americans are represented by thousands of roots/country/blues songwriters who do a good job at their craft. The second group has only one great player and you just dissed his work as if you were a small town paperboy with too much to do.
    I think this record will be debated amonst those of us who know GP’s work is more than a great 30 year old album. Some of us won’t like it as much as Don’t Tell Columbus or 12 Haunted Episodes, perhaps the two best works of immigrant American Rock. But I think the album deserves more than what you gave it, which was quite lame.
    ——-
    “It’s not enterprising to grapple with the past…”

  2. The readers deserve better than this review. Graham Parker is one of the great singer-song-writers of the past 30 + years. “Imaginary Television” is another fantastic album, as have most of the albums Parker has put out in the near 30 years since The Rumour were his backing band. American Songwriter should be embarrassed by this review. It’s truly pathetic and beyond amateurish. Is it too much to expect the reviewer have a clue as to the remarkable body of work that Graham Parker has put out in the near 30 years since he parted ways with The Rumour?

  3. As a matter of fact, I do. I’ve known Parker’s work since 1976. It brought me no pleasure to dislike this album. But the fact is, even cult figures run out of cool songs and intriguing ways to put them across. You’re both letting your blind admiration of Parker keep you from seeing that he’s not as consistently pithy as he once was. Another Gray Area, The Real Macaw and others have been similarly flawed and humdrum. PG

  4. Your comment is even dumber than your review. Early GP was one thing, but that was not a great American songwriter. He really did not become that until 12 Haunted Episodes. You and your magazine really have no idea what is going on in the world so you want to hear albums like they were done in 1979. Grow up!
    ———
    There’s not enough trees to hide behind…

  5. Mr Parker at this point in his musical career has so much of the american musical traditions in his music, that your insight into his current contribution should have taken that consideration, when reviewing Imaginary Television. Artist that a music listener pay to see and hear should not have to read such shallow minded review as the above, perhaps you major influence in music today is someone other then Mr Parker, however you should have dismissed your own lifes accomplishment as quickly.
    Long live Imaginary Television and Graham Parker!!!

  6. I too am very disturbed by the review above. Perhaps it was poor editing that left out any context in which to judge this album, which I even admit is not one of his best. That said, at least half the songs are worthy of the Parker namesake, and I have found the album as a whole to be a grower. It’s also pretty shameful of the reviewer to followup with a comment that references 2 early 80’s albums from Parker right after he left the Rumour behind. There is no comparison there. At least reference other albums that Parker has done that have some similarity in sonic approach like 12 Haunted Episodes or even the acoustic flavor of Your Country. The reviewer showed no deep knowledge of Parker’s work. The album is worth at least 3 or 3.5 stars. If you are a fan of Parker’s lighter side, there is something here for you.

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