Todd Snider is coming out of the closet as a flaming “Peace Queer†on August 19th. He’s loud, he’s proud, he’s here and he’s a “Peace Queer.†Normally when musicians get too political it annoys me. I just want to scream “Shut Up and Sing.†However, somehow Todd Snider pulls it off using his humor and wit as a weapon. It just goes to show that there is no need to stand on a soapbox and pontificate to get a message across. Snider seems to understand that he can deliver the same message with subtlety and still make his point. In fact, sometimes a paper cut hurts worse and lingers more than a deeper wound. With Snider whether you agree or disagree with the message, you can appreciate the delivery. Peace Queer is no exception.
This EP is a brief statement. In fact, it is sort of a side project while he is working on a full length project with producer Don Was. It starts out with a song of victory albeit a hollow one, “Mission Accomplished.†On this song Snider wonders aloud about Will Rogers famous quote, “He may have liked every man he met that’s true; but he never said he liked every man that he knew.†The album also includes a minimalist cover of CCR’s “Fortunate Son.†The most poignant song is a spoken word song, “Is This Thing Working,†in which a bully is cast as the central character in a parable with obvious implications. The song also has a sung version titled “Is This Thing On†that closes the album. However, it is the spoken word version that proves to be more moving. Snider is joined by guests, Patty Griffin, Kevin Kinney and Will Kimbrough. Snider predicts big things for this project. In an interview with NPR’s Cokie Roberts he feels the album, “will outsell Thriller,†and estimates sales at 6.8 Billion copies. He also said, “(O)n the day that happens, I guarantee America and parts of Canada world Peace.†That should make him bigger than Elvis, The Beatles and even Zam Fir, master of the pan flute.
Catch a Preview of Todd’s Upcoming Full Length:
This review also appears on Amber Waves of Twang
About the author: Chip and his family live in Birmingham, AL. Roll Tide!