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I openly confess having totally mixed into one confused indentity Randall Bramblett, Delaney Bramlet, Elliot Randall and a few others. Well, Elliot Randall is on this album as a sideman, and Randall Bramblett is neither Delaney or Bonnie. Nor anyone else. He is himself and has made a fine album to prove it. With That Other Mile, all possible confusion ends. He, helped by some of the best studio musicians around, the Brecker Bros., Chris Parker, Eric Weissburg, Lill Lee, Hugh McCracken, to name just a few, have made a very interesting album of Bramblett originals. Although it's an easy album to get into, it has a kind of excitement that I can't easily describe. The musicianship, production, sound and tempos are dynamite. But the lyrics are a problem for me. I don't know if I like or I loathe them. They're a weird, catchy, strange, happy complication of the English language. Randall admits "liking to combine opposites…mystic with funk…integrating astrology, psychology, physiology," and a lot more. Well, I don't know. It's not all that heavy. In fact, I find it rather light and clever. What he is talking about, I can't be certain but it surely is kind of far out. The music and the performance are stark perfection, full of little details and smart production. Many current pop-rock themes are touched with great precision and warmth. The recorded sound is just great, and there are lots of interesting elements vying for attention on this release. I think that it was intended that way. The fact that the weird words are so intelligible, but not up front enough to override the instruments and the artistry of the many players, is fascinating. What it all adds up to is, it's good. What it is or what to call it? I don't know. It certainly is worth a good long listen to. Put it through an SQ decoder or a QS (Vario-Matrix) decoder for a real sonic/mucial treat! A basket full of fascinations. P.S.—It shows how sloppy other records sometimes are. Producer Steve Tyrell, and most of the rest of the crew, including Randall, did the same number on B.J. Thomas' Longhorns & London Bridges. |