Various
This Bird has Flown
(Razor & Tie)
Cover albums are a tough sell. This 40th anniversary tribute to The Beatles’ Rubber Soul is not without its charm and a great line-up of indie rock types, but the soul quotient is low. The Donnas play it straight for “Drive My Car” — cutesy and boring. The Fiery Furnaces take chances with “Norwegian Wood,” but their indulgent version should be chopped into kindling. Ben Lee’s bare-bones “In My Life” is downright depressing. Thankfully Ted Leo picks it up, hitting the pedal on the dance-friendly “I’m Looking Through You.” Ben Harper turns “Michelle” into a cool Sunday reggae treat. Sufjan Stevens, naturally, carries the best track on the record with the quirky and harmonious “What Goes On.” Fab moments in an otherwise OK album.
—Sue Carter Flinn
This article appears in Dec 6-12, 2007.