Izzy Stradlin - River

Izzy Stradlin's 4th LP, River features the same classic lineup from his previous efforts - Rick Richards on guitar, Duff McKagan on bass and Taz Bentley on drums - with the addition of Ian McLagan on keyboards.

My favorite track here is "Head On Out;" closely followed by "River."

(If you'd like to play along at home, you can listen to the album here).


The title track is laden with Izzy's signature hooks and could be on side 2 of GN'R Lies if if it was played a little slower and dirtier. This is the happiest, catchiest song on the disc, and the lyrics read like a page from a daily serenity guide.

Money flowed like a river
And it all went to the sea
And the tide came rolling back
I saw what I had in a dream
And the wind started howling
And the sand came through the trees
And as fast as it had started
It had come back to a breeze
...
You can run like a river
Till you end up in the sea
And you run till night is black
And keep on going in your dream
And you know all the long while
It's the journey that you seek
It's the miles of moving forward
With the wind beneath your wings

Listening to the lyrics on this disc, you can tell that Izzy was in a good place mentally. He's wise, reflective, positive and content as you can tell from the words above.

But the second half of River isn't as great. With the exception of "Feelin' Alright" (not the Traffic tune), tracks 6-10 are pretty forgettable. Not unpleasant to listen to - this is a great collection to put on at work, or while you're tossing back a few beers - they're just more filler than killer .

I'm a big reggae fan, and I love Izzy's version of "Pressure Drop," but the reggae tunes on this LP, "Run-In" and "Shall Walk", are mostly dispensable throw-away cuts.


Then there's "Underground," which is a punk-rock version of "Shall Walk," which really hammers home the fact that these last few cuts are probably leftovers from Ride On, or maybe even older.

Another strike against River is that the CD is only 36 minutes long. Pretty short considering a standard disc can hold up to 74-80 minutes.

All things considerd, I have to put River in the "bottom 2" of all Izzy's official releases. That being said I still enjoy it more than VR's Libertad or anything Gilby Clarke ever put out.


-La Macchina