Ground Trouble Jaw/Walt Wolfman

by Richard Swift

Overview

After releasing Richard Swift's final studio album The Hex a couple of months after his untimely death in 2018, Secretly Canadian pairs two of the songwriter/producer's EPs, 2008's Ground Trouble Jaw and 2011's Walt Wolfman on an R&B-themed compilation. A pop historian often recognized for the influence of Tin Pan Alley and stylistic heirs Randy Newman and Harry Nillson on his songwriting -- including their sharp wit -- on these EPs, Swift also prizes soul, funk, and blues on contrasting sets. The earlier Ground Trouble Jaw includes an eclectic, tuneful mix of styles, from the classic Motown-steeped "Lady Luck" to the vaudeville-esque ditty "A Song for Milton Feher." The former features Swift's trademark haunting reverb, as does the soulful vintage prom ballad "Would You?" More mischievous and less sweet, "The Bully" combines '60s soul and the novelty quality of "Monster Mash" for the funnest "bully"-titled song since "Wooly Bully." Speaking of monsters, more extreme on all fronts is Walt Wolfman, whose ghostly "MG 333" is so cavernous as to be nearly incomprehensible. Displacing lyrics, its lush, echoing vocal harmonies, skittering drums, and seemingly infinite depth take the spotlight, also pushing aside keyboards that are only barely needed and only barely there. Later, the aptly titled "Zombie Boogie" leads into the howling, psychedelic rock tune "Out & About." The seven-track monsters-and-misfits-themed EP closes with "Drakula (Hey Man!)" and the funky, Booker T.-inspired instrumental "St. Michael." Each notably self-recorded on a four-track, these EPs stand as a record of Swift's rewarding audaciousness as a producer and as a song stylist. ~ Marcy Donelson

Product Details

Release Date:	04/05/2019
Label:	Secretly Canadian
UPC:	0656605038711
Rank:	43609

Tracks

1. Would You
2. Lady Luck
3. The Bully
4. The Original Thought
5. A Song for Milton Feher
6. Whitman
7. MG 333
8. Laugh It Up
9. Zombie Boogie
10. Out & About
11. Drakula (Hey Man!)
12. St. Michael

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Richard Swift   Primary Artist

Technical Credits

Richard Swift   Artwork,Composer,Engineer
Christopher Colbert   Mastering