Coming from Reality is the 1971 second and till this point
last album by Detroit singer-songwriter Rodriguez. Rodriguez and his music came
to wider public prominence with the 2012 academy award winning documentary “Searching
for Sugar Man”, with his career having largely been till that point an
underground word of mouth sort of affair, at least in Anglo-Saxon countries.
The story of Rodriguez career is fascinating to say the least and the
documentary film does a good job in bringing it to light for a wider audience, which
is why I will not touch on it here and instead will focus on the music and what
is a truly great second album. An album which often gets overlooked in favour
of its more well-known predecessor Cold
Fact.
Coming from Reality was in some ways a transformational
album for Rodriguez after his lo-fi acoustic folk debut. Here he placed more
attention on the production of the tracks going for a slicker sound, while the songs
themselves also have more of an electric feel, although his standard acoustic
folk style is still prominent across the album. This might have been down to a
desire from his record label to make a more commercially sounding album, as
well as the presence during the recordings of acclaimed British guitarist Chris
Spedding who helps out on electric guitar and production. Musically, Rodriguez
also branches out more into other styles on this album, with spoken word,
garage, funk, R&B, jazz, Latin and classical all appearing in various forms
and guises across the album, making this set of tracks a highly eclectic take
on the singer-songwriter/folk style which Rodriguez successfully went for on
his debut. Lyrically, the songs themselves continue to focus largely on social
themes, something which was ever-present on Cold
Fact, with their social imagery
and anti-establishment inklings settling in the mind of the listener right from
the get go. Lines such as “I’ve played faggot bars, hooker bars, motorcycle
funerals” are hard for the listener to ignore as they are so vivid and hard
hitting, especially when they take the form of a spoken word track, in this
instance “A Disgusting Song”. Through his words, Rodriguez is masterful in
capturing the essence and mood of his own experiences living in Detroit, a city
which was then experiencing the beginnings of its now well publicised collapse
and downward spiral.
In terms of
what songs standout, well there are many and it is impossible to narrow the
list down as there is hardly a dud on here. “Climb Up on My Music” is a
brilliant opener and sets the tone for the rest of the record. Here you are immediately
alerted to some of the changes from the first record, especially this tracks
electric feel and Santana-like sound with its shuffling guitar, electric piano
and subtle jazz influences. “I Think of You” is a beautiful folk ballad that
features some delicate acoustic finger-picking in the mould of Jose Feliciano
and a very soulful vocal. “To Whom It May Concern” is another stunning track
that opens with a great piano refrain before transforming into a kind of LA
singer-songwriter jam. I am sure if Rodriguez had been involved in that scene
he would have taken it by storm. “Halfway Up the Stairs” like many of the
tracks on this album employs electric piano and also strings, with Rodriguez
paying more attention in trying to achieve more of a pop sound, something he
manages with great success. Finally, we are fortunate that the re-release of
this album contains three outstanding bonus tracks which should have made the
final cut for the original album given their quality. The first of these is the
fantastic “Street Boy”, a sing-a-long sort of affair which also features a well-constructed
acoustic solo. Aside from his vocals and lyrics, Rodriguez guitar playing is an
album highlight and probably doesn’t get the attention it deserves especially
given the quality of the little solos he puts in like the one on this track.
This bonus track is accompanied by the road tripping “Can’t Get Away”, and
finally the acoustic summer track “I’ll Slip Away”.
Although
Rodriguez debut album was fantastic, and in most people’s eyes represents the
true essence of his song writing and music, I feel that Coming from Reality trumps that album. Musically the songs on here
are more melodic with a stronger focus on the production of the songs and how
they are presented to the listener, something I believe improves the material.
Rodriguez still retains the level of song-writing of his debut and the folk
sound he is known for is still there in spades. However the thing I love about
this album is how he branches out further musically, especially in his
exploration of other styles and sounds that all in all come together so well on
here. This album is an early-70s classic and I guess symbolises what might have
been had Rodriguez continued to record. My parting message is a request for
those of you who haven’t seen the film “Searching for Sugar Man” about this man’s
musical journey to see it. As apart from the brilliant music on display here,
this man’s story is truly one of the more fascinating stories in the history of
twentieth century music.
A
- Sam
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