Dan Bern - Smartie Mine (1998)

Like many albums that stretch beyond two hours, Smartie Mine, is a hit and miss affair, though with cuts such as the Dylanesque "Chelsea Hotel," the hilarious and psychotic "Talkin' Woody, Bob, Bruce & Dan Blues," and the Pete Rose, Bart Giamatti/Dan Bern, Martha Wainwright dialogue "Gamblin' With My Love (Pete Rose)," he connects solidly. Musically, Bern and his touring band bring a live, punkish muscle to the songs (check out the superior new version of "Tiger Woods"), but at the same time have the discipline to pull the reins in when necessary. Smartie Mine's length may be a bit daunting for the casual fan, but a small investment of time should reward you with at least one solid disc worth of strong material.

Tracklist:

CD 1 - Blue:

01. Smartie Mine
02. One Thing Real
03. Tiger Woods
04. Chelsea Hotel
05. City of Models
06. Krautmeyer
07. Crosses
08. Colors
09. Airplane Blues
10. Freight Train Blues
11. Talkin' Woody, Bob, Bruce & Dan Blues
12. Ballerina
13. Simple

CD 2 - Red:

01. Beautiful Trees
02. Joe Van Gogh
03. Little Russian Girl
04. Gamblin' With My Love (Pete Rose)
05. Murderer
06. Alia
07. Two-Month Affair
08. Baby Love
09. Sculpter
10. Dark Chocolate
11. Decadent Town
12. Hooker
13. Cocaine/Blue Jay Way
14. True Revolutionaries