Sometimes there’s a certain kind of distraction that takes
over. And sometimes a blend of restrictions and confinements makes it an arduous
task to embrace the singular passions in life. It’s rare that it’s everything
from the aforementioned combined – but rare is not never. While it sometimes feels
like a sort of cloudy fog that has encapsulated everything in its path, the
distraction is a definite kind of solace. An escape from the immediate
temporary, a remarkable kind of love that has sustained throughout; the only thing I know for sure is what I wanna do, anytime, anywhere…
Arguably the hardest working band in music has always been
The Roots. I know I’m not going out on much of a limb by saying that but they
were the hardest working band even before they became the best house band on TV.
But before and during their mainstay as the best house band on TV, The Roots
has been making album after album of tremendous music – twelve total studio
albums if you count all of their collaborative albums – and How I Got Over is
#9. Distinctly a lot brighter than their previous two albums, Rising Down and
Game Theory, it’s also the first album after the Bush administration finally
left office. So it immediately has a much clearer flow and the songs just sort
of gel throughout The Roots’ positive, optimistic point of view. And since they
became the best band on TV they’ve also met some amazing musicians who they
collaborated with on this album to create some of the better songs.
I need to include “A Peace of Light” because it features the
original females from Dirty Projectors. A band The Roots met through performing
on the late show and whom they immediately fell in love with. It’s mostly an
introduction that features the women harmonizing their vocals into one bubbly,
smooth opening that allows ?uestlove’s timeless drums to appear in a light
refrain.
Jim James is another hardworking musician who crafts music
with his main band My Morning Jacket, as a solo artist and who also did a collaborative album
with M. Ward and Conor Oberst as Monsters of Folk. The Roots borrow the melody
from the opening song off their album, “Dear God,” and also use James to sing
the chorus on “Dear God 2.0” (perhaps homage to “The Seed (2.0)” as well?) The
Roots version is a straightforward letter about the pain in the
world and how everything from broken homes, to drugs, to jobs, to love can fall
apart and how there can be so much suffering in this world. “Why is the world
ugly when you made it in your image?”
Joanna
Newsom is another
hardworking musician as she not only composes all of her music but practically
writes poetry when she writes lyrics. Here The Roots borrow her “The Book of
Right-On” on “Right On,” for what is probably the best song on all of How I Got
Over. Her version features her trademark harp and her singular voice but The
Roots version combines it all for a smashing hit that showcases just why they’re
one of the best bands, period. – Bryan
