THE CHIEFTAINS, “Long Black Veil”; <i> RCA Victor</i> (***)
The Chieftains appear hellbent on knocking off Frank Sinatra as the heavyweight duet champ of the world. They’ve assembled a slew of their pals: Mick Jagger (alone) and the Stones, Sinead O’Connor, Sting, Van Morrison, Marianne Faithfull, Ry Cooder, --even Tom Jones!
Remarkably, it never sounds as if there’s a shotgun behind these marriages.
The songs mostly are traditional Irish tunes, and a generally dark batch it is, full of failed loves and fallen heroes. There are sprightly moments too, but even the most heartbreaking tales are buoyed by the Chieftains’ unflaggingly rich, spirited playing, a reminder sorrow is the necessary flip side of joy.
A couple of performances--Sting’s attempt to go bilingual in “Mo Ghile Mear (Our Hero),” and O’Connor’s overwrought reading of “He Moved Through the Fair”--miss the mark. On the other hand, Jagger has a great time with the title tune, which becomes an eerie evocation of a Druid midnight rite. And Faithfull applies those flayed vocal cords to “Love Is Teasin’,” in which the singer looks back at her life, mistakes and all, wishing in vain “I were a maid again.”
Top that, Mr. Chairman.
New albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor) to four (excellent).
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