Featured Album: Arthur Russell's Love is Overtaking Me

Arthur Russell has been called a genius. More than once. In fact, the use of the word almost devolves into cliché for the frequency with which it is applied. When reading about the cellist/guitar player/disco producer/singer/songwriter/avant-garde composer you're rather more likely to come across an argument qualifying his genius, defining its specific terms, ("...cementing the fact that Russell was a genius..." “...sublime genius..." “progressive club genius” "...sketchy genius…”) than you are to encounter a genuine rebuttal of the premise. Much like with HBO’s "The Wire," against which people will on occasion lob the criticism that the much-loved show is not, in fact, the greatest television program of all time, there is little debate over whether Russell was, at the very least, a genius.

Much of this claim stems from the unrelenting consistency he managed to display across such a wide stylistic breadth. His most prominent body of work is his contribution to New York’s post-disco world in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s. Then there is the ethereal minimalism of his works for voice, cello, and electronics featured on his masterpiece “World of Echo.” On “Instrumentals,” Russell wove together soulful horns, soaring strings, and delicate slivers of slide guitar into an intricate yet breezy orchestral jazz number. “Calling Out of Context” gathers an eclectic batch of songs that builds a uniquely captivating architecture on the foundation of late ‘80s synth-pop. However, rather than betraying a lack of focus, Russell’s incessant genre hopping feels more like an ever shifting backdrop on which to display his singular voice and vision.

But, you may ask, what of us who care not for the opulence of avant-disco or the ethereal minimalism of, well, minimalism? What of the song, in its purest form, free from the trappings of stylistic window dressing? Fortunately, Russell’s output has this area covered as well. While most of his music was firmly rooted in the Big City New York Art Scene, the Iowa farm boy that he left behind in his youth still found a voice in some of his finest and most accessible work. Often considered something of a footnote to his career, “Love is Overtaking Me” Audika Records’ compilation of his “song” songs, could stand alone as a career-capping collection of tunes from a truly great singer-songwriter. There are distinct notes of Dylan, Lennon, Nick Drake, Randy Newman, Gram Parsons, and even a bit of Lynyrd Skynyrd. But whomever the superficial touchstone may be, each song is anchored by the immense warmth and humanity that so completely and persistently infuses all of his work. In fact, Russell’s truest genius may be precisely the way he manages to transubstantiate the obvious passion he felt for life and for love into song.

NOBODY WANTS A LONELY HEART - ...

I COULDN'T SAY IT TO YOUR FACE...

If you're at all interested in learning more, "Wild Combination" is a highly recommended viewing. Unlike many documentaries detailing the lives of late lamented musicians, which are little more than a string of friends and admirers rhapsodizing over the subject, this is film that stands alone as a cinematic achievement in its own right. (In fact, this was my introduction to his music)