A happy ending to this blog

Sandinista Project contributors Amy Rigby and Wreckless Eric are getting married. Hooray!

And, with this wonderful news, I'm going to close down this blog. I enjoyed chronicling the development of The Sandinista Project over the years as it went from a crazy idea to a crazy idea that we actually completed. The record's been out for nearly a year, I don't expect there will be any new news to offer about it, so that's it. Those of you interested in my semicoherent ravings can visit my regular blog from now on. And, even though I won't be updating it anymore, I'll keep this blog live if people want to relive our progress or download MP3s and PDFs.

The Sandinista Project was one of the best projects I will ever be involved with. Thank you for sharing it with me.

R.I.P. Mikey Dread

Mikey Dread (nee Michael Campbell), producer, songwriter, and performer, is dead. We were honored that the man who so influenced The Clash's Sandinista! was a contributor to our Sandinista Project (he accompanied The Blizzard of '78 on "Silicone on Sapphire").

Greatest. Misheard lyric video. Ever.

And they said we took liberties on The Sandinista Project.

Thanks to R.C. for the pointer. Sorry for taking so long to acknowledge it.

Mick Jones, live on public radio

Mick Jones will appear today on NPR's Fresh Air.

Willie "Police on My Back" Nile at Iron Horse in Northampton tomorrow night

There's a good preview piece here, and it mentions our humble project. If you're anywhere near Northampton on Sunday, you oughta go. Indeed, the Iron Horse is an important part of the Sandinista Project story: Amy Rigby committed to our set when she played there -- and her opening band that night, Storybox, immediately earned itself a spot on the collection.

Wanna be a Broadway star? You should have been on The Sandinista Project

Yesterday I was delighted to see, in the New York Times Arts & Leisure section, a full-page advertisement for Passing Strange, the new musical by Sandinista Project contributor Stew (he did "Broadway"), coming to Broadway with previews starting in February.

Mark Cutler's fantastic alternate version of "Junkie Slip"

Just received a comment to an earlier post in which I wrote that Mark Cutler recorded two versions of "Junkie Slip" for The Sandinista Project: a "Doc Watson/zydeco" treatment that we included on the finished product, and a "Velvet Underground meets the Beach Boys" version, which is great but we couldn't fit it. The comment:

Jimmy (and Mark and all), First, thank you for giving Sandinista the long "second look" it deserves. However, the liner notes to the CD say to check the website on how to hear the other version (which sounds intriguing) of Junkie Slip - but I can't figure out where I can do that. Can you help us out? Maybe post a downloadable MP3? Please?

Yes, of course. Here it is, in M4A format (3.9M).

Dirty Linen review

It doesn't look like the review is available online, but here's what Jeffrey R. Lindholm wrote about The Sandinista Project in Dirty Linen:

Sandinista! was the Clash's magnum opus -- an amazing three-record set from the proto-punk band that had almost no punk music. Instead, it filtered the band's musical politics through gospel, soul, blues, dub reggae, rockabilly, jazz, rap, and more. This two-disc tribute, organized by music critic Jimmy Guterman, replaces the Clash's very British sensibility with a bunch of mostly American bands who add their own twists, emphasizing the original songs' power. Sometimes the culture, er, "clash" is just too much, as when [negative mention of one track excised -- hey, it's my web site!-JG], but overall the set delivers surprises (including theremins!) and satisfaction. Highlights include Mekons Jon Langford and Sally Timms' dub reggae "Junco Partner/Version Pardner" and Katrina Leskanich's (of the Waves) hyper-exuberant "Hitsville U.K." Profits support two charities -- Amnesty International and the Joe Strummer Memorial Forest.

"Surprisingly consistent"

That's what Stereophile says about The Sandinista Project in its profile of 00:02:59 mogul Abe Bradshaw. Here it is, as an 800K PDF.

Time for Another Very Special Clash Christmas

I won't have the pleasure of being in Chicago this holiday season, but if you are, join Sandinista Project contributors London Calling of Chicago for Chicago Calling IV: Another Very Clash Christmas on December 22 at Schubas Tavern.

Acadiana Calling

It took a while, but The Sandinista Project has made it to Louisiana. We're reviewed in The Times of Acadiana, along with another capsule review of the I'm Not There soundtrack. It rates us as four "career opportunities" out of five.

Looooouuuuu!

Well, we came up empty in the Grammy nominations yesterday, but I would like to note that Sandinista Project contributor Lou Carlozo has written the introduction to a new Bruce Springsteen book, For You. Congrats, Lou!

P.S. Someone just mentioned to me that Dirty Linen, which doesn't post its print reviews on its website, just ran a review of our record. If anyone here is also a Dirty Linen reader, please pass it along.

No more DRM for The Sandinista Project

I am delighted to announce that The Sandinista Project, the record that took four years of my life, is now available on iTunes without DRM. It's now a good choice if you only want to own one or two songs at $.99 a shot. But the physical product is still less expensive and much better-looking.

Un-DRM'd Sandinista Project MP3s on Amazon

Amazon soft-launched its MP3 store this morning and, yes, you can download un-DRM'd MP3s of all the songs on The Sandinista Project. But BEFORE YOU DO THAT, please note that downloading every track will run you $17.99, while purchasing the physical product, which will of course yield un-DRM'd MP3s as well as a beautiful package, is a mere $14.99. Caveat emptor.

October 22 update: For reasons I can't discern, the price of a physical copy of the set on Amazon has been upped to $18.98, while the digital version is now $17.98. It's a bargain either way, but I can't figure out why the price went up: Maybe because it's ridiculous to charge more for a digital product than a physical one?

With two Sandinista Project tracks, this is now my favorite playlist ever

WRUW - 91.1 FM - Program Guide | Playlists : College Pop

Congrats to Jim and Lou, and thanks to Scott (whose own band is on this for, alas, a non-Sandinista Project cut -- how dare they?) for the pointer. Two down, 35 to go.

Merchandise?

Someone just wrote me to ask if he could buy any Sandinista Project merchandise. Before I go to the expense of manufacturing merchandise to support a record that didn't quite have a Justin Timberlake effect on the Billboard chart ... is anyone interested in Project merch?

The Sandinista Project on Facebook

We've caved in and started a "Sandinista Project" group on Facebook. Join us!

Coming soon to WXRT Chicago

While in Chicago, I had the great pleasure of taping an installment of The Eclectic Company, the WXRT show hosted by Sandinista Project contributor and jack of all trades/master of them all Jon Langford. The shows broadcast on Tuesday nights. I'll post here when I know which Tuesday it will be. The show was an enormous amount of fun. And, since there's a big Chicago angle to the record, I got to play almost all of the Chicago-related cuts from the set (apologies to Phil Rockrohr).

UPDATE: We'll be on the show this coming Tuesday, August 21, at 10pm CT, streaming here.

The Sandinista Project on AllThingsD

My guest column isn't about the record, but I did use it as an example.

R.I.P. Tom Snyder

"The Magnificent Seven," June 1981, on Snyder's Tomorrow show. (Thanks for the link, Mark!)

And, if you're interested, here's the associated interview:

Music & Nightlife | Tribute CDs

I just happen to be in Sonoma county this week, so it was a nice surprise to pick up a local paper and see what The North Bay Bohemian says about the recent onslaught of tribute records. Here's what the paper had to say about our entry:

"Far more entertaining is The Sandinista! Project: A Tribute to the Clash. This two-CD love song to one of the most ambitious triple-album sets of the 1980s reaches artistically and more often than not hits the mark. Members of the Mekons and many of the insurgent-country artists that populate the feisty Bloodshot label roster make up the core of this project. The Smithereens, Camper Van Beethoven, former Clash collaborator Mikey Dread and Paisley Underground demi-god Steve Wynn also all get in their licks. The results are uneven, just like the original recording, but well worth checking out."

The Joys of RE-Creation (Los Angeles CityBeat)

I'm misquoted only slightly in this Los Angeles CityBeat article about tribute records. Here's the excerpt from the piece that mentions The Sandinista Project, with my quotes fixed:

"Adds Jimmy Guterman, a music writer who became involved in producing reissues and now has made the new The Sandinista! Project: “Because albums may be dead in this iTunes era, there may be nostalgia for the very idea of an album.”

"His Sandinista! is a multi-artist two-CD set re-creating the Clash’s controversial early-1980s follow-up to its classic London Calling. It features, among others, Jon Langford and Sally Timms, Willie Nile, Camper Van Beethoven, and a mesmerizing version of “Broadway” by Stew.

"Guterman believes the Clash’s Sandinista! has been unfairly overshadowed by London Calling. “This is a work of advocacy for the original album,” he says. “It’s thought of as a big, sprawling, three-album mess, but I’ve developed enormous affection for it,” he says. “Their earliest records show you how much you can take out of a recording and still have rock ’n’ roll. This shows you how much you can put back in and still have punk.”

"ickmusic" gives us a thumbs-up

includes unauthorized Lothars and Amy Rigby MP3s

Ruby Can't Fail

The Montclair Times profiles Ruby on the Vine, their participation in our project, and their show in NJ this weekend.

No Depression review

Can't find it on the website, so here it is as a JPEG.

We are relics...

...so it's no surprise that we've been reviewed (not too positively, I should warn you) in Relix. It's not available online, so here's a PDF of the review.

WANTED: Guitar Paradise of East Africa

It came out around 1990 on Earthworks. I love it. I appear to have misplaced my copy (or I loaned it to someone a long time ago). I figured I'd buy a new copy. It's not on iTunes, it's out of print, and an Amazon seller wants $77.50. Before I do something stupid, does anyone out there have a copy?

UPDATE: Found (thanks, G.E.)!

The Sandinista Project is on iTunes -- but don't buy there unless you have to

The direct URL is here, but I don't recommend buying it there, unless all you want is one track by your favorite performer. The songs are out of sequence in one of the two iTunes views, the PDF booklet isn't there, it's encumbered by DRM, and it's $19.98. Almost everywhere I've seen, the physical CDs, with Eric Mongeon's fantastic packaging, is less than $15. If you do choose to buy via iTunes, may I remind you that there are links to the liner notes and packaging on the right rail of this page.

Our record label: No longer a toddler

00:02:59 Records is now two years old. We parents know what to expect from the terrible two's, but congratulations anyway, Abe!

It's all about Storybox

That is, according to "Cries & Whispers" on MassLive.com. See the second item. If you're in Northampton on Saturday night, this article makes clear what you ought to do. Request "Let's Go Crazy"! (Thanks for the pointer, Scott!)

Down to New Orleans

It makes sense that we're covered on a site called offBeat.

We've reached Chattanooga and Harp

The Chattanooga Pulse: After reading about a covers album by the hair metal stalwarts Poison, you can find out that they think our record is "highly recommended." The truly obsessive can read the same brief review here. I have no idea which is the original and which is the reprint.

Harp says we made "a tribute record with much imaginative inspiration," but I can't find the review on its website

Amazon returns to its senses

A while back in this space, I noted that Amazon had lowered the price of The Sandinista Project from $14.99 to $13.99 and I didn't know why. Apparently, Amazon didn't know why either and this morning it bumped up the price back to $14.99. I hope you saved a buck while you could, but 37 tracks and a magnificent package are still a bargain at $14.99. Buy it. (May 30 update: it's $13.99 again. No, I don't know why.)

And while you're on Amazon, there are two other records I recommend. I'm in California now for a conference, and these two new collections kept me good company during the flight west.

The Future Is Unwritten is the sort-of soundtrack to Julien Temple's new film about self-proclaimed "punk rock warlord" Joe Strummer. It's an appropriately weird collection of songs Joe championed or played on.

And, if you adored Ethan Lipton's "Corner Soul" on The Sandinista Project, you'll want to hear a full record by him. Fortunately for you, he happens to have a new one. I played his Mr. Softy twice during my travels yesterday. I love its humor, the hard truths lurking behind its humor, its diversity (of mood, of genre). I even love the costumes (which you won't see unless you buy the physical product). My favorite favorite song (that is, my favorite of many favorites) is "Pirates of the Heart." I can’t count how many times I’ve heard a great new song live only to find it ruined when the performer got around to cutting it in the studio. But the revelation live is even sturdier, nastier, funnier, and more vulnerable on disc. Congratulations to Ethan and His Orchestra! Now go visit his website.

The New York Times on The Sandinista Project

So there I was, on a Sunday morning, trying to get the kids ready to go to the beach, when I gave up briefly and picked up the Sunday New York Times. I saw that Jon Pareles had written a piece about a Joni Mitchell tribute record that I'm somewhat interested in. The headline made it seem like the article would have some big ideas about tribute records, which it did, and I was very pleasantly surprised to find these paragraphs within:

"Tribute albums have always been exercises in memory and continuity, mapping connections of sound and style. They trade on familiar songs or famous names, but what they promise is not an oldies experience (or for that matter, the experience provided by tribute bands that mimic name-brand acts). They aim for relevance, not nostalgia. And now, in the era of the isolated MP3 download and the randomly shuffled playlist, tribute albums aren’t just homages to musicians. They are also tributes to the vanishing idea of the album itself: that a collection of songs can still mean something as a whole. That is the strategy behind another worthwhile tribute album, “The Sandinista! Project” (00:02:59), a song-by-song remake of the Clash’s 1980 album “Sandinista!” by indie-rock and alt-country stalwarts and unknowns.

"Beyond each track’s individual thrills, a tribute album can illuminate a style and sensibility or reconsider a historical moment, as “The Sandinista! Project” does with contributions from Amy Rigby, Stew, Jon Langford and Sally Timms and dozens of others.

"The original “Sandinista!” filled three LPs with outsize ambitions: songs about violence, victims, revolution and drugs, delivered in a haze of punk, reggae, funk and glimmers of hip-hop. The remake, like most tribute albums, is hit or miss, but luckily it’s anything but reverent. A few Clash imitations show up, but so do multidirectional time warps. Songs skew toward Appalachia with banjos, plunge into psychedelic loops and echoes, unleash theremin on “The Call Up” and the Persian wail of Haale on “One More Time.” Members of the Clash wanted their songs to reverberate worldwide; “The Sandinista! Project” proclaims that they succeeded. And it not only insists that the original album hung together but goes on to take the sprawl of “Sandinista!” even further."

The full article is available here.

More bloggers weigh in

A Shot Of Rhythm writes "If you had told me, two weeks ago, that my favorite track right now would be a cover of an obscure Clash song by the former lead singer of Katrina and the Waves (of "Walking On Sunshine" fame), I'd have probably referred you to various social services. Still, that's exactly what happened. THE SANDINISTA PROJECT, an ambitious-yet-intimate paean to the Clash's complex opus, features a whole bunch of interesting names (Jason Ringenberg, Wreckless Eric, Amy Rigby, etc.) offering their takes on a song from the album that - while not the masterpiece that many revisionists and hipsters would like to claim - definitely deserves a reconsideration from its initial malign. The best track, by a long mile, is Katrina Leskanich's "Hitsville U.K.," which sounds as bright and big-hearted as The Clash, the Motown records to which they paid loving tribute, and - indeed - rock-n-soul music in general." The blog also includes an unasked-for link to Katrina's track, which is everything the blog says it is ... and more.

BlogCritics also comments, at greater length, mostly positively. (I love "Broadway"!)

The bloggers begin to weigh in

In The Architectural Dance Society: that crooked, crooked beat, blogger Jeff Norman thinks hard about our project. (Thanks for the pointer, Doug.)

Two more in the "thumbs-up" category

The Tampa Tribune likes us and loves Katrina (who doesn't?).

The Iowa City Press-Citizen says we made "a cool roundup by any measure."

Four pieces today .. including our first all-out negative review (hey, it was bound to happen)

The Huntsville (AL) Times mentions us.

The Evanston (IL) Review says we're "varied and often inspired."

The Chicago Free Press (scroll down) thinks we did "an admirable job."

Stylus hates us. And we've received a grade to match. It's my first C- since second-semester statistics 22 years ago. I have, however, been called "charmless" somewhat more recently than that.

Want to know more about the outstanding artist who performed "Broadway" on The Sandinista Project?

Then read this profile of the peerless Stew in today's New York Times.

The Sun rises for us

The Sun in California (there are Studio City, Sherman Oaks, and Encino versions) has a review. Rather than link to the big, fat full PDF of the issue, here's the text of the review:


SHORT CUTS
By Bill Bentley

Various Artists, The Sandinista Project (00:02:59)

Tribute albums are tricky business. You know going in that the original work is going to be almost impossible to beat. How in the world can, say, a recreation of the Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds album be better than the original? The list goes on and on at those taking a well-intentioned stab at these affairs, until recently it felt like there should be a total ban on the endeavors. It got so overloaded that for a bit, it seemed like there were tribute albums to tribute albums being recorded. That said, every once and awhile a collection will slip through the net and make actual sense, just like The Sandinista Project does. Based on the 1980 Clash magnum opus, this effort features a wild range of musicians, each taking one of the original songs and having a go at it. And like the law of averages would dictate, some succeed with total flair, with only a few dragging through. Producer Jimmy Guterman has wisely chosen artists on these 37 tracks, which in the end is the difference between luster and lethargy, and does what any righteous tribute album should do: send you running for the original to rediscover the majesty contained within.


If you really want the whole PDF, it's here.

Also, in what now feels like a previous life, I knew a great guy at Warner Brothers named Bill Bentley (who also took part in a spirited tribute record: More Oar). If the author of this review is the same person and sees this, please get in touch with me: jimmy @ guterman.com (spaces added in vain attempt to curb spam).

Update: Found (thanks, Cary)!

The Orange Country Register weighs in

Revisiting and reworking the Clash

They like the record ("a grandly ambitious lark") -- and misspell my name (update: fixed)!

Coverville covers us

Yesterday I was interviewed on Coverville. I haven't listened to the recording, and I do remember that I felt I sounded like an idiot while I was talking, but at least you get to hear three songs from the record.

"a broad, globalized worldview and buoyant spirit of possibility"

so says Pasadena Weekly

PopMatters review

It's not one for the scrapbook, but it's here.

Positive review in the Village Voice ... and an opportunity to save a buck

"A track-by-track Clash tribute that cuts the crap"

On an unrelated matter, but useful if you're cheap, my friend Mark just wrote me that the price of the record on Amazon has dropped again, from $14.99 to $13.99. I don't know if it's an error, but get it cheap while you can.

Newhouse News Service likes us

'Sky' high- MassLive.com

The Chicago Sun-Times loves us

From Sunday's paper

Another rave review, this one from The Austin Chronicle

by Raoul Hernandez, as part of a Clash roundup

BlogCritics review

Scroll down, but it's there

Abe Bradshaw remembers a fateful lunch

Or, how this project and this label found each other

Release date!

Four years ago, I made a joke to someone about redoing Sandinista! -- and now it's real. Happy release day!

$14.99 is the new $18.98

As expected, Amazon has lowered the preorder price for The Sandinista Project. It's coming out on Tuesday!

Brief mention in USA TODAY

Found by Doug Mayo-Wells of the Hyphens:

Still more album previews

Interview with Jeff Sanchez (Soul Food, "Midnight Log")

The money quote from Local Drummer Plays on Clash Tribute: "I've definitely been obsessed with the Sandinista! record most of my life." I sympathize.

First published review

From the Fort Worth Weekly

Preorder The Sandinista Project on Amazon

A mere $18.98 for 37 blow-your-mind tracks

Booklet and packaging

You still have to wait several weeks to buy the record, but you're welcome to download the booklet and packaging, both as PDFs. They will also come in handy if you intend to buy or steal the record in digital form.

What's next?

Now that the record is about to come out, it's time to rethink what the point of this blog is. I've got some ideas, but I'm more interested in yours. I've turned on comments; please weigh in on what you think would make a good Sandinista Project blog or website.

Sex Clark Five, "Career Opportunities"

The performance of this song for The Sandinista Project is refreshingly lo-fi; so is this video.

Advance CDs

In December 1980, when I bought an import of the original Sandinista! LP, it was snowing. Today I received a box of advance CDs (i.e., full discs in a double jewel case but no packaging) for The Sandinista Project and it's snowing, too. I promised myself I wouldn't listen to the CDs until I finished my work today, but who was I kidding? They sound fantastic: not quite as great as they did in the mastering studio, but I can't include a million-dollar mastering studio with every copy of the record.

I'll begin shipping the advances to the performers over the weekend. If you're a member of the media and would like a copy, please contact our publicist Cary Baker.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have